


obb

by Astroclicker



Category: No Fandom
Genre: ARE WHAT HAPPENS IN CANON, BUT I WON'T GO INTO DETAIL ABOUT THAT LMAO, Character Death, Character cries a lot, F/M, Idk why I'm posting this first when like... Y'all don't even know like, JUST JAYDON AND HECTOR, Just only Two (2) characters switched roles, M/M, Maybe sometime in the future I guess, Not yet anyways, OH YEAH WARNINGS AND TAGS WILL BE UPDATED AS THIS GOES ON, Of Club Penguin... lm AO...., SO I DIE--, SWITCHED ROLES WITH EACH OTHER, So Hector acts like how Jaydon acts in the Canon, THE GENERAL HAPPENIGNS HERE..., The actual story at all lmao but THAT'S OKAY, There's a lot to explain to that, This is in a Reverse AU from the actual characters, Which is Hector and Jaydon lmao, While Jaydon acts like how... He would of acted like if he wasn't CURSED--, and there's a bit of manipulation, anyway, but... the universe they're in... is in a weird altered version..., i will be finishing it though, idk how to explain that but. you know that will show up, might take a while, not finished, not major but there's death, there's a lot to cover lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-21
Updated: 2018-11-21
Packaged: 2019-08-27 01:23:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 37,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16692700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Astroclicker/pseuds/Astroclicker
Summary: Big Gay Makes A Mistake





	1. :-)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (from the TAGS)  
> This is in a Reverse AU from the actual characters 
> 
> Idk why I'm posting this first when like... Y'all don't even know like 
> 
> The actual story at all lmao but THAT'S OKAY

After a long day of rehearsal for the upcoming 'Ruby and the Ruby' play, Jaydon and his fellow actors had stopped, finishing up for the day. Some of his fellow actors being the only friends he had ever really had. Which is kind of sad, but understandable. Jaydon was a bit of a Prick. He met these Friends through his career at the stage, with had landed him with at least 5 Pity Friends tm... However, Jaydon didn't really care if they were only his friends out of Pity. Honestly, he didn't really care at all.

Anyway, everyone had started packing up to leave home for the day. "Don't forget your scripts!" The Director called out, holding up their own copy. "You're still going to need that for tomorrow, It's not until the 15th until the Play Premiers!" Shuffling of paper was heard throughout the stage, right after the Director's announcement. Jaydon glanced around the room, holding his own copy and watching everyone getting ready to leave. He looked down to the floor and saw some of the props laying around from rehearsal.

He paused and walked over to a bag he had with him and leaned down and shoved his script into his vinyl messenger bag. He walked over to the props on the floor and picked them up. Then he picked up another prop. And then another. And then Another. Soon, he started picking up almost everything he saw and knew were not supposed to be in that place. Jaydon was tempted to go and get the broom to just straight up clean the stage. He walked over to the chest, where the costumes and some of the props were supposed to go and kicked the lid open.

"Hey." Jaydon paused and turned around, arms full of props. It was his friend, named 'Blake'. "Are you going to stay and clean up?" Blake asked, slipping on his sweater and adjusting his old blue mail carrier bag. Jaydon glanced down at his arms and back over to Blake, giving his friend a simple nod. Blake shrugged. "Alright, well I just wanted to tell you something before I leave."

He motioned his hand, telling Jaydon to come closer. Jaydon paused and furrowed his eyebrows, turning around and shoving the props into the chest and turning back around to Blake, leaning in to hear what he had to say. Blake paused, glancing behind him and putting his hand up. His voice came down to a whisper. "There's... A guy here." He vaguely motioned behind him. "That had been here for quite some time now."

Jaydon raised an eyebrow, showing a disdainful look. "Oh?"

Blake breathed out a laugh and pulled Jaydon a bit closer, his voice dropping down to a much quieter tone. "I hadn't noticed at first, but this whole time... The guy looks... A lot like you!" Blake pulled away and again, vaguely motioned behind him again.

Jaydon flickered his eyes behind Blake and quickly spotted the guy he was talking about. He was right! This man looked eerily similar to him, right down to the silly hair things and the general body shape. The difference between the two was the fact the man wore a blue sweater.

Jaydon stared for a long moment, unsure what to think. What was this guy doing here? Who was he and why did he look like him? Did he do that himself, or was it coincidence? Was this guy the reason there had been some strange rumours about him? Soon, the man looked up from what was assumed to be his phone and glanced around, quickly the two met eyes and immediately, Jaydon looked away. "Ah." He simply replied, unsure what to say.

Blake rolled his eyes, seeming a bit annoyed. "Well? Doesn't that make you think??" He asked, putting his hands out. Jaydon blinked, obviously still unsure what to think. He slowly shook his head. Blake just waved his hands dismissively. "Ah, whatever." He turned around and began to take his leave. "I'll see ya tomorrow, right?"

Jaydon nodded. "Yeah..." He replied, still trying to gather his own thoughts.

Blake left with other actors and the Stage Crew that handled the background workings and made sure everything worked properly. Jaydon watched them leave for a bit but soon continued cleaning up, trying to ignore the man.

As he continued, he was suddenly confronted with the Stage Director. "Ooh, Jaydon! Thank you, Thank you!" They cried out. "Thank you so much for cleaning up! You're always a big help with cleaning, thank you so much!" The director held Jaydon’s hands firmly, shaking them as they continued to thank him. "You sure you don't need help, right?" They asked.

Jaydon just awkwardly glanced away and nodded. "Yeah." He assured.  
The Director looked almost relieved and patted Jaydon’s hands. "Thank you again, if you ever need help just call me, okay? You have my number, right?" Jaydon pulled his hands away and reached into his pocket and pulled out a simple flip phone. The Director stared at it in disbelief as Jaydon simply handed it to them.

"No, I don't," Jaydon stated.  
The Director gingerly took the phone and looked up at Jaydon, as if asking if he was joking. Jaydon just continued to watch. Obviously, he wasn't kidding. The Director then simply raised their eyebrows and looked down at the phone, putting in their number and all.

As they did, Jaydon’s eyes flickered around the room and soon, landed to the spot where he last had seen the man. He was gone. He must have left with all the others since it was only him and the stage director left. Jaydon made a face. He must have creeped the guy out from staring for too long. Jaydon glanced back over to the director and watched them finish up.

They gave back his phone finally and smiled. "That's me right there," They pointed at their name in the contacts list. "Just call me whenever okay?" Jaydon just blinked at his phone and looked up at the Director. They waved and started walking out of the Stage. Finally, with the door shutting and a loud slam, which echoed throughout the stage, Jaydon was alone. He sighed and walked to the back, where the custodian closet was located.

He opened the door and immediately, some objects fell out. Paper towels, boxes, cleaning products, and the mop. Jaydon groaned and dug around in there for a bit, looking for the broom. The closet was so unorganized, it was terrible and made it really hard to find anything. But soon, he was able to find what he was looking for; not after dropping many things and creating an even bigger mess.

Jaydon stepped back and sighed in annoyance, kicking a paper towel back into the closet. Pulling out the broom, he shook it a bit, making sure to get all the left-over dust and stray hair that the previous sweep-up had picked up and turned around. He idly thought of cleaning up this closet after he was done sweeping.

Suddenly, he was stopped in his tracks. There, not far from him was the guy he saw and was mentioned about earlier. The man smiled. "Sorry if I scared you!" The man said. "I was waiting for everything to finish up before talking toyou..." He sheepishly glanced down, rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't want to distract you from what you were doing." Jaydon stared at him, a little bewildered at the sight of the man. He had freckles... The guy tilted his head. "Oh. Are... You okay?" He asked.

Jaydon blinked and quickly glanced away, feeling his face heat up. He nodded. "Um-- Yeah. Yeah, I am... Sorry."

The guy chuckled and put out his hand for a hand shake. "Well, heya! I'm Hector!" He greeted. Jaydon hesitated and slowly held his hand and shook it. Quickly, he noted Hectors hand was much warmer than his own. His hand also had freckles on it... So, Jaydon could only imagine that this man had these freckles scattered all over him.

Jaydon's mouth twitched at the thought. "Hey... I'm Jaydon." He replied, letting go of Hectors hand. Hector smiled and placed his hands behind his back.

"Hey, Jaydon! I just came to find you," Jaydon raised an eyebrow at this. That's a little weird. "Because I heard a lot about you and there were people who mentioned how we both look very similar!" Hector breathed out a laugh. "And I can really see why!" Jaydon adjusted his grip on the broom and nervously glanced down at it.

"Haahh... Yeah... Me too." Jaydon only continued to feel his face heat up, unsure why he was feeling this way. He had never really felt this way to another... Well, besides Gary the Gadget Guy, but he was kind of over it...? It was a complicated feeling. He remembered going up to Gary and telling him about his feelings towards him. Obviously, he was rejected.

Hector tilted his head. "Oh, are you going to clean up?" He asked, pointing towards the broom. "I can help if you want." Immediately, Jaydon gripped the broom tighter. He couldn't help but feel his chest flutter at Hectors words.

He opened his mouth and stuttered out a response. "O-Oh... Alrigh--... Alright, sure." Hectors smile brightened and quickly, he walked past Jaydon and into the closet. Jaydon watched him. He couldn't help but watch Hectors every movement. He watched as Hector searched around the mess in the closet; Hector making a noise of frustration as he pushed items out of his way.

Jaydon watched as Hector kneeled down and dug through the mess. He couldn't help but think that Hector was... Adorable. Which is weird. Hector was basically him but... He seemed better... And in fact, cuter. Jaydon thought about his own appearance compared to Hector and realized he looked like a total creep. With his unkept look, his dark spotted handkerchief and the tired look he always had.

He couldn't help but feel embarrassed by his own looks. However, thinking about how Hector looked, made his heart flutter. He wanted to stare at Hector longer, just to see every feature he has. He wanted to see how he looked and to know the way he acts. He wanted to know if Hector was seeing anyone and if he would like to get some coffee after. He wanted to give him something as a gift, he wanted to him to come over so the two could watch a show together, he wanted to count every freckle this man had, knowing very well he would lose count. He wanted to see his body and kiss every inch of it, feeling his warm hands against his own as the two lay together in bed, as he played with Hectors hair and tell him how much he loved hi--

Suddenly, he was pulled out of thought. Hector turned around and gave Jaydon a weird look. Jaydon quickly realized he had been staring for a long time and immediately, he looked away. He turned around fully and decided to look somewhere else. He couldn't help but think he must look more of a creep than he did before.

Jaydon made a face at himself. _"Oh god, What the hell?"_ He whispered to himself. Where the hell did these feelings and thoughts even come from? He placed his hand onto his forehead and let out a shaky breath. His mind only continued to buzz with these strange thoughts, each one only becoming progressively worse by the second. God dammit, he barely knew the guy! Yet, here he was just completely gushing over him. Jaydon let out a scoff at his own thought. He didn't believe in Love at first sight and yet here he was. This also happened with Gary... But, he knew how the guy acted and how he was as a person in general. That was different. Jaydon sighed at his thoughts and rubbed his face. God, he was so gay.

Suddenly, Hector let out an 'AH-HAH!', causing Jaydon to turn around. There Hector stood with another broom, triumphantly holding it up. "I finally found it!" He said. "It was tucked into the back of the closet... I don't know why, but it was..."

Jaydon breathed out a laugh and nodded. "Alright then." He turned and walked towards the main stage. Hector quickly walked by, seeming to be excited to start. As he did, he brushed up against Jaydon’s arm and immediately, Jaydon’s heart jumped. He stopped and had to physically stop himself from just straight up fainting from overheating.

Hector turned around. "Oh, I'm sorry... Did I scare you?" He asked, sounding genuinely concerned. Quickly Jaydon shook his head and chuckled nervously.

"No. No, you didn't..." He swallowed and began sweeping. "I just... Decided to start here." He awkwardly said, as he begun sweeping in the spot. Hector raised an eyebrow and nodded.

"Alright, I'll start over here then." He said, walking only 5 feet away from Jaydon. The two simply begun sweeping in silence. Jaydon couldn't think of anything to say. He wanted to hear Hector talk, but he was so bad with conversation. Or being around people in general. Jaydon was never a 'people person' and right now, it bothered him. He opened his mouth and let out a squeak, instead of a word. Hector glanced up at him and raised an eyebrow. He smiled. "Is there something you want to say...?" He asked.

Jaydon paused as he tried to think of something. "I--... What do you do?" He stuttered and shook his head. "I-I Mean... Where--... Do you work?" He asked.

"Oh." Hector simply replied. "I work at the coffee shop as one of the baristas." He informed him. "It's not that great, but the pay is okay. It's enough to get me by with bills and all that." Hector paused to think. "I only took that job as a side job."

Jaydon looked up. "Side job?" He asked.

Hector nodded. "Yeah, I go to college!" 

Jaydon blinked at Hector and continued to sweep the floor. "Oh really?" He asked. "What kind of ... Courses are you taking?"

"Medical." Hector replied. "I'm trying to become a doctor!" He said with a smile. 

Jaydon glanced back up, the corner of his mouth quirked up. Becoming a doctor...? Wow, Hector must be a good guy. "Oooh, cool." He simply replied. "So, how long will that take you?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm already through my 4 years!" Hector said. "I only need to complete the 3 to 7 years of training to before I'm eligible for my medical license!" He smiled and leaned against the broom in thought about something.

Jaydon raised his eyebrows. "Wow, already through 4 years? That's impressive." Hector looked over to him, his smile still there.

"Thanks! I'm pretty proud of myself for making it through!" He chuckled and glanced over to Jaydon. "But enough about me... What do you do?" He asked.

Jaydon stopped and pursed his lips. He shrugged. "Um... Not much." He admitted. "I'm an actor here at the stage..." He swept the floor, gathering a small pile of dirt.

"Oooh..." Hector chuckled. "I heard you're a pretty good actor." He commented. Jaydon felt his heart flutter once more, becoming a little flustered at the fact Hector had heard about him, that wasn't anything weird or bad. Usually, rumors about Jaydon were pretty bad. He remembered hearing one, mentioning he was a secret serial killer with full intentions to stab you if you were ever to talk to him... Or the weirdo who was messing around with a drill, flashlight, and a bowl of salad. Which was why he doesn't

have much friends.

Not all of them were true, obviously! Jaydon wasn't sure who was spreading these rumors, but he was sure that if he were to meet this person, they would surely meet his fucking fist. He breathed out a laugh and muttered a 'Thanks'.

Hector smiled. "I also heard you were pretty good at cooking too!" He suddenly said. Jaydon paused. Where did Hector hear that from? Does he know one of his 'pity friends'? Did they tell him that? Jaydon ignored the thought and again smiled, his face slowly becoming red. Soon, the two simply continued to clean up, picking up and putting everything away into their rightful places. It really didn't take the two long to finish up and once they were done, they moved onto the closet, picking up everything and organizing the closet.

As they did, Jaydon couldn't help but continue to sneak glances towards Hector and constantly think about him. After sorting through everything, Hector turned around and smiled, sighing as he did. "Geeze, that was a lot to go through!" He said, wiping his brow. He must have gotten a little too warm from that sweater of his.

Jaydon nodded in agreement. Honestly, this wasn't too much for Jaydon at all. He actually enjoyed cleaning up and... It could actually be called a hobby of his. He had dealt with much worse messes than this in the past. He only agreed with Hector because... Well, for some reason. Jaydon stepped out of the closet, along with Hector and glanced around the place. The stage was clean, to the point where Jaydon was satisfied. He smiled at the sight and turned his head towards Hector. "I... I guess we're done." He simply said. 

Hector breathed out a sigh, his pleasant smile still showing. He glanced up to Jaydon. "Oh, really? Neat!" He paused. "Are you going home right away?" He asked, his smile fading.

Jaydon raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "I don't know." He replied. Hector's smile returned once more and quickly he dug into his pocket.

"Say... You don't happen to have a phone, right?" He asked, pulling out his cell. Immediately, Jaydon his chest fills with butterflies. He nodded, digging into his own pocket and pulling out his flip-phone. Hector paused and the sight and furrowed his eyebrows but nodded. "Here..." He looked down at his phone and tapped a few things and handed Jaydon his phone. He pointed at the screen. "Just add your number here and press 'save' right there, okay?" He informed.

Jaydon nodded, handing his phone to Hector. They both began putting in their numbers. After they were done they handed back each other’s phone. Hector chuckled. "Well, I kind of have to go..." He said. Jaydon quickly felt disappointed and let out a simple 'ah'. Hector scratched the back of his neck. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Jaydon! I hope we can talk again tomorrow!" 

Jaydon smiled, nodding in agreement. "Yeah, me too..."  
Hector smiled and turned on his heels and began walking away. Jaydon watched him leave, slowly following him until he got to his vinyl messenger bag, stopping there. Hector pushed the door open and walked out, the door slamming loudly behind him. Jaydon stood there in silence for a long moment, thoughts filling his head once more. Suddenly, Jaydon let out a loud scream, which was loud enough to make someone come into the stage in a panic, asking if everything was alright.

With that, Jaydon picked up his bag and went home. He begun obsessively cleaning up everything. He just couldn't get Hector off his mind and the thought of him just made him feel like he couldn't function properly like he used too. The thought of him amazed him, he simply seemed so perfect, somehow. He thought about him for the rest of the day. Not even cleaning could get him off his mind. Thinking of him made him forget to even read over the script he was supposed to read.

He looked down at his phone and debated if he should message Hector. He smiled and sent a simple 'hi'... However, Hector didn't message back. Not until several hours later, which was late at night. Hector was so nice and the two had a simple conversation. Jaydon doesn't really text much, so he was just as awkward as he was in real life. He had a habit of sending many emoticons at once, which most found annoying, but Jaydon didn't really care. They didn't stop texting back and forth until into the late, late hours of the night and Hector seemed to have fallen asleep before Jaydon. He didn't text back and it was nearing 4 in the morning; So, it was understandable. Jaydon soon ended up falling asleep after a while as well


	2. :-))

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ooh Acting lmao

Suddenly, Jaydon was awakened by his phone ringing. Jolting awake and sitting up, he drowsily searched the bed for his phone. It was under his pillow, which explained why it was so loud, yet muffled. He picked up. "Hello...?" He said with a groggy voice.  
"Jaydon!" It was Blake. "Thank god-- Are you doing okay?" He asked.

Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows and glanced around the room in confusion. "... I guess... why?"

"Did you just wake up?" Blake asked. Jaydon simply hummed in response, rubbing the sleep out of his eye. "Oh gee, I guess you didn't hear about what happened, didn't you?"

"Hear what?" Jaydon asked.

Blake breathed out a sigh and shuffling of paper were heard. "Apparently, something bad happened just last night and there's a lot of rumours that you did it, Jaydon." He informed. 

Immediately, Jaydon stopped. He only became much more confused than he was when he woke up. "What...?" He asked. "I was here at home, cleaning up since I got back from work..."

Blake hummed. "And what time was that?" Blake asked as if he didn't believe him.

Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't know..." He trailed off, thinking about the time. "Maybe around... 6?" He guessed with a shrug. “I was cleaning the stage the entire time since you left and went straight home when I was done.”

There was a long pause from Blakes end. “Were... Were you with anyone?” He asked.

“Yeah, I met that guy you told me about. The one sitting in the seats in the back... His name is Hector and--”

“Ohh, you mean the guy who looks like you?” Blake interrupted. Jaydon hummed in response. Blake paused. “Hmm... You don’t... Think that guy did something, right?”

Immediately, Jaydon couldn’t help but think about Hector. Did he do something during those hours he hadn’t replied? He scoffed. As if. That guy seemed too much of a softie to even think of such a thing. “No, I don’t think so.” He replied. “Did you even meet the guy?” He asked.

Blake breathed out a laugh, catching what Jaydon was trying to say. “No, but I heard he's shy or whatever." he finished. 

Jaydon paused and thought to himself. "What do you think happened last night?" he asked, a little anxious to know.

Blake stopped, the sound of pages turning from his end. "I dunno." He admitted. "They haven't released the information just yet..." He sighed. "Man, I hope nothing too bad happened... Who knows what could have happened..." Jaydon nodded. "Honestly, I'ma little nervous that something happened to someone we--" Suddenly, the call ended. Confused, Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows and looked at his flip-phone. It flashed the battery icon, indicating it was dead. 

Jaydon sat there in bed, staring down at it. He sighed and got up from the bed, thinking he should get to work, since he was already an hour late. Him getting ready didn’t take too long, he just had to pat down his hair and put on his shirt and the handkerchief. He walked back into his room and unplugged the charger from the wall and shoved it into his bag. Quickly, he walked out and made his way to the Plaza. As he rushed over to the stage, he raised an eyebrow as he walked, passing by some islanders who gave him weird looks. They whispered to each other and Jaydon could only assume they were talking about him. He rolled his eyes and ignored them. However, there were some people who had no idea about the rumours and just continued like normal. 

Passing the Snow forts, he spotted something behind the Clock Tower, which quickly went out of view. He paused and tilted his head, slowly walking towards it. He couldn't quite see what was there, but he was able to see a shadow, hiding just behind the tower. He continued to watch it, as he walked towards it. He wasn't sure why, but he felt a twinge of fear sneak up on him as he quietly approached the tower, very wary about whatever could be there. He couldn't tell if whatever was there had noticed him coming at all. 

Now, just underneath the snowball target, he made sure not to make a noise and slowly peaked behind. Suddenly, thoughts filled his mind on what he should do if this 'something' was potentially dangerous. Honestly, he wasn't even sure why he was here if he felt unsafe. Jaydon held his breath an--... Suddenly, he heard sobbing. Furrowing his eyebrows, Jaydon peaked around the corner, confused.

There, curled up in the snow, crying, was Hector. Concern took over Jaydon and he kneeled down. "Hector...? Are you okay, what's wrong?" He asked. The man looked up at him, his cheeks rosy and stained with tears. It was a little weird to see Hector cry, but... Jaydon couldn't help but think the expression fit him. Almost, cute. Hector sniffled, wiping his face as he did. He opened his mouth and only a sob came out as he tried to form a sentence. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows. "What happened?" He asked much more insistently. Hector shook his head and continued wiping his face.

Again, he opened his mouth and only incoherent words came out as he slowly shook his head, still wiping his face. Jaydon only furrowed his eyebrows and stared at him in confusion. Finally, Hector cleared his throat and spoke clearly. "No..." He croaked out. "You're going to be like them-- You're going to say that I'm a bad person and that I did bad stuff--" Hector cut himself off with a sob, covering his face as he did.

Jaydon stared, unsure what to say. He frowned. "No." He said in a way as if he were offended. "I wouldn't say that, why would I say that?" He asked.

Hector shook his head, still wiping his face. "I-I don't k-know..."

"They're just rumours, Hector. Who cares about them." Jaydon interrupted. He stood up and dusted his knees. Hector stared up at him as if he couldn't believe what Jaydon just said. "Come on, get up. Stop crying." He motioned his hand, telling him to follow. Hector watched him, not knowing how to react to what Jaydon said. He rubbed his eyes and sniffled. 

Hector furrowed his eyebrows. "O-Oh... Okay then..." He sat up and cleared his throat once again, wiping his face as he did. Sniffling, he dusted his butt as he looked around. He pursed his lips. "Where... Where are you going?" He asked. 

Jaydon paused and glanced to his left. “I’m going to the stage, I still have to do rehearsal stuff for the upcoming play," Jaydon informed him. "I'm acting as Tenor from Ruby and the Ruby." Hector smiled and suddenly seemed excited.

"Can I follow?" He asked, slightly hopping in one spot. Jaydon raised an eyebrow at how fast Hector had changed his mood but ignored it and nodded. Turning on his heels, he made his way to the Stage, with Hector following just behind him. Since the stage wasn't too far, they both got there pretty quickly. Entering the stage, Jaydon was quickly thrown off at the sudden difference. The set had been built overnight, basically showing that the play was coming really soon.

The director immediately called his name, earning Jaydon’s attention. “Where have you been?!" They yelled from the set. Jaydon paused and simply shrugged, glancing away as he did. "We had to use this silly mannequin as a replacement for you!" They pointed at a mannequin that was dressed as Tenor, which kind of leaned awkwardly to its side. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows, staring at it. "And it's not a very good replacement for an actor... Now, come on! Get your costume on and get your stuff ready!"  
Jaydon nodded and quickly walked to the back of the stage. The director turned to continue what they were doing but stopped at the sight of Hector, who was just standing there behind Jaydon and immediately, the stage director looked into the direction where Jaydon went off to and back to Hector. They pointed at Hector, furrowing their eyebrows and opening their mouth. They stared at Hector for a long moment, before simply shaking their head and walking away. Hector watched the director walk away, pursing his lips as he had his hands behind his back. Then suddenly, he ran off towards the direction Jaydon had rushed off too, in an attempt to follow.

Jaydon stood behind the set, digging into the costume chest to get dressed. As he did, he reached into his bag and pulled out his charger and phone, plugging it into the nearby socket and hiding his phone into his bag, the wire just sticking out. Soon, Blake showed up. "Hey." He simply greeted. Jaydon glanced up at him, holding the coat and hat for Tenors outfit. "What happened earlier, why'd you hang up on me?" He asked. Jaydon rolled his eyes and dug back into the chest, grabbing out the tie and shirt.  
"My phone died." He simply informed Blake. "I forgot to charge it last night." He pulled out the pants and made a face at it and glanced back over to Blake. "Sorry."

Blake breathed out a laugh. "Wow, that's a first. You never really use that old thing." He crossed his arms and glanced around. "So, did you meet someone or something?" He asked, shrugging as he did. "I dunno, your phone never really dies."  
Jaydon unfolded the coat and took a look at it, giving it an almost distasteful look and only gave Blake a side glance as he placed the coat onto his arm. "Yeah, I guess." He simply said with a shrug. "I met that Hector guy-- Like I said over the phone..." Jaydon paused, his mind suddenly filling with the thought of Hector. His face began to flush red and nervously, he let out a breathy laugh and looking further away from his friend. "He's okay."

Blake nodded. "Ah, okay... So, how is he?" He asked. Jaydon cleared his throat and closed the chest. He paused to think.

"He's okay." He repeated. "I... Think he's a nice guy. I guess..." He and let out a nervous laugh and scratched the back of his ear. "I'm sure he's good, he's really nice." He continued, still facing away from his friend.  
Blake squinted at Jaydon and tilted his head, to get a better look at Jaydon’s face. He breathed out a laugh. "Jaydon..." He started before pausing for a long moment. Soon, a smile stretched across his face. "You're not... Into him, are you?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "You never really say that about to anyone." He pointed out.

Slowly, Jaydon put his hand onto his face and let out a long breath. He turned and pointed at Blake. "Listen..." He stood for a moment and lightly shook his hand in the air, his face still a tinge of red. "That's none of your business." He said before turning around to get changed. Blake stood there and crossed his arms, lightly shaking his head.

Jaydon hurried behind a panel and quickly started changing into the costume. As he finished up, he turned around, adjusting the jacket. He fiddled around with it for a bit and walked towards the main stage, before bumping into Hector, making them both stumble backwards. 

"Oh, Sorry!" Hector breathed out a laugh.

Jaydon raised an eyebrow. "You're not supposed to be back here." he bluntly pointed out.  
Quickly, Hector became nervous and stumbled over his words as he tried to form a sentence. "O-Oh... Well, I-- I didn't... I didn't know, I'm sorry." Hector admitted. "I was just trying to look for you-- I just--... I don't-- I got too nervous just standing over there." he pointed behind him and nervously began to fiddle around with his hoodie strings. "I'm sorry, I'll jus--... I'll just go over there." He turned on his heels and quickly began to walk away.

"Oh Shit--" Jaydon said under his breath. "Hold on, wait-- It's okay." He called out, effectively stopping Hector. "I was surprised, that's all." There was a long pause between the two and honestly, Jaydon couldn't help but think Hector was a little bit dramatic.  
He breathed out and turned back around. "Oh... Well." Hector paused, looking Jaydon up and down with a raised eyebrow. There was a long pause from the man. "Oh!" He finally said. "Hey, you're right! You are Tenor, are you?" 

Jaydon looked down at himself and patted his pants and breathed out a laugh. "Yeah, I am." he simply replied. Hector chuckled, covering his mouth as he did. Jaydon watched him as he laughed, noticing how Hector's cheeks had dimples when he smiled and how his face seemed to flush when he laughed. Jaydon couldn't help but stare.  
Hector pointed at Jaydon. "You have your pants pulled waaay up!" he mocked. Immediately, Jaydon looked down at himself and nervously glanced away. He opened his mouth to say something in defence but was interrupted by a shout, making him look in the direction it came from.

"Hey!" The stage director called out. "No time to dilly dally with conversation, come on!" They motioned their hand at him to come over. "We have a deadline, Jaydon!" they said. Jaydon made a quiet 'oh' sound and nodded, quickly walking by Hector and to the stage area. Getting into position the director paused. "Where is your script?" They asked, crossing their arms at him. Realizing he left his script in his bag, which was nearby the costume chest, Jaydon hummed awkwardly and pointed behind him with his thumb. The director rolled their eyes at him and quickly Jaydon made his way over to grab the script.

The stage Director pointed at Hector, who was nearby the backstage simply watching. "You--" Hector paused and pointed at himself. "Get to the seats, you can't be up here when we're working!" The director instructed, sounding irritated and frustrated. Hector rolled his eyes and walked over to the seats and sat in the same place as yesterday.

The director smiled and clasped their hands together as Jaydon returned with his sheets. "Okay, everyone ready for--" they paused and counted the actors. Suddenly, they let out a groan. "Where is the actor for Dom?" they asked, obviously annoyed. The actors paused and glanced around at each other, shrugging as they did. Jaydon raised an eyebrow, not realizing the one actor was missing. "Do any of you know where the actor could be?" The director asked.

The actors mumbled amongst each other, obviously unsure where their fellow actor could be. "Maybe try calling them?" the actor for Ruby suggested. 

The director hummed in thought. "... Yes, maybe I should." they thought out loud. "Do you know the name of the actor? I cannot seem to remember right now." Again, the actors shrugged in reply.  
"Wait-- Isn't that Jean from the local puffle rescue team?" Blake suddenly added, walking from the backstage.

The director smiled. "Oh, yes! That's right!" They sighed. "Jean could have at least told us they wouldn't be in today..."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah... They're probably busy with their other job right now." the actor added.

The director sighed and crossed their arms, thinking to themselves. "Hm... I guess we'll simply also have to use a mannequin as a replacement for the actor..." They shook their head. "Goodness me, how is this rehearsal going so out of plan..." They mumbled, before suddenly clapping their hands once. "Okay, into place! We will work with what we have."

The actors nodded and went straight to work.


	3. :yeah:

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friend Time

Finally, the rehearsal had wrapped up for the day and everyone began packing up, putting the costumes away and this time, cleaning up after themselves. The Director reminded everyone not to forget their scripts once again and mentioned about if the other actor doesn't come by tomorrow, they will have to replace them. Jaydon couldn't help but feel bad for Jean. He remembered how excited they were when they got here just last month, but it was understandable how they would not be able to come. They say saving puffles is a tough and dangerous job, seeing how you literally hang over cave systems and balance on unstable minecart tracks.

He shook his head and folded up the costume, placing it back into the chest. That's not his problem, so whatever. Jaydon stepped over to his bag and opened it up, neatly placing the script into his bag and unplugging his phone from the wall, tucking it into his bag as well. As he did, Blake stepped up to him.

"Hey." He simply greeted, prompting Jaydon to turn around. Blake paused for a moment, as if in thought. "What are you doing after?" He asked. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows and thought for a moment, before shrugging.

"I don't know." He simply replied. "I was thinking I would just go home and..." He shook his head. "I don't know-- I guess I'm just going to go home." He repeated. Jaydon paused and raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Blake shrugged. "I dunno, I just wanted to know if you were busy or not... I was going to ask if you wanted to come over and hang out, I guess." He finished with a shrug.

Jaydon blinked at Blake and soon thought to himself. There really wasn't anything he had planned and he doesn't really need to clean up anything... Nor does he have a side job he had after the stage. He nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'm not doing anything." He admitted. "I'll meet you at your house in a bit, I'm going to go home and drop off some things first."

Blake nodded. "Yeah, sure! I'll call the others and see if they're busy!" Jaydon nodded and quickly, Blake walked away, out of the stage. Jaydon crossed his arms and glanced over to the seats and scanned the area, realizing that Hector was gone. Disappointed, Jaydon sighed and picked up his bag, adjusting the strap to sit comfortably on his shoulder and walked out of the stage, back home.

Once back at home, Jaydon simply tossed his bag onto the table in the kitchen and pulled out his phone, plopping down onto the couch, since there wasn't much for him to do, besides wait. He stared down at his phone and blinked, seeing himself in the reflection of his screen. He didn't really look presentable... In fact, he looked exhausted. He raised an eyebrow at himself. He didn't really feel exhausted at all; However, he knew it was just his normal look.

Jaydon sighed and tossed his phone to the side of him and stared up at the ceiling, his mind blank. Honestly, this was something he did regularly. He didn't do much after work. All he would do is simply sit around or read something. Either those or work out or something like that. Which was why he’s pretty built.

He yawned and scratched his chin, thinking about what happened today and what he had to do tomorrow. He remembered about the script and how the director told everyone to at least read it over to remember what exactly your lines would be. Well, Jaydon didn't really need to do that. He already was able to remember his lines, since Tenor didn't really speak much in the play. It was mostly Detective Hammer and Ruby who spoke the most.

To be honest, Jaydon really enjoyed acting as Tenor. His favourite line with Tenor was 'you're barking up the wrong tree hammer'. It was funny seeing the actor for Hammer step back as they seemed to be intimidated by him. Of course, Jaydon wouldn't actually do anything to really harm the actors-- Like what they would usually expect. So, he would apologize for scaring them after the whole acting. It was really stupid how the actors would think he would actually harm them in some way.

Sometimes he wished he did not have the reputation of being so scary. However, that was mostly unachievable, considering by every other day or week, his reputation seemed to lower from many rumours about him that were simply not true. If he were to tell them what he did most of his life, it would simply be, sitting around or working. That was what he mostly did during his days. He's not a very outgoing guy at all.

Jaydon rubbed his face and sighed, thinking he should get a cup of water before he continues letting his thoughts go on and on. Sitting up from the couch, he walked over to the kitchen, and dug into the cupboards, pulling out his favourite cup he used a lot; which was a simple blue hard plastic cup; and poured himself some water.

He looked out the window and stared out. The sun was beginning to go down and this was usually the time Blake would invite him to hang out with the others. They wouldn't do much, besides play games and talk about various things Jaydon didn't quite understand or participate in. He wasn't much for conversation either... But, he was pretty good at games! So, there's that. In particular, he was very good at Astro Barrier. It was his favourite game to pass the time with. He would usually play that game when he wasn't doing much, so there's that added to the list of his 'not doing much' activities.

Taking another sip of his water, he sighed and closed his eyes as the sun shined in his face, blinding him. He was now able to see the annoying imprint of the circle of the sun in his sight. So, he decided to just simply turn around.  
As he did, his phone made the notifying noise, which was sort of muffled from being face down on the couch. Jaydon breathed out and placed his cup down and quickly walked over to his phone. It was most likely Blake, telling him he got the others or asking where he was. Jaydon was only supposed to drop off his stuff and speaking of that, he really should make his way over to Blakes home, since that's what he said.

Flipping open his phone, he paused. It was Hector!

 _"Hey, I think you did well in your rehearsal!_ _Sorry I left early, I had something's to take care of ha-ha... Puffles and all, you know lol" -_ 8:15 PM.

Jaydon breathed out a laugh. "So, that's where he left off too," he muttered to himself, his face beginning to warm up from the compliment.  
_"It's okay. Thank you!!!! :)" - 8:15 PM._

Suddenly, he got another text. It honestly, kind of startled him. It was only Blake. _"Hey where are you? are you still at home" -_ 8:16 PM.

 _"Yes, I will be there in a bit" - 8:16 PM._ Jaydon sighed and tucked his phone into his pocket and quickly adjusted his handkerchief, grabbed a sweater, and his house keys, rushing out the door towards where Blake lived. As he walked out, his phone chimed and vibrated. Jaydon shook his head. He'll look at it when he gets to Blakes. It won't really take him long to get there, since his friend didn't really live too far from him, so it will be an easy trek on over.

He knocked and as he did, he heard Blakes voice from inside, telling him to go ahead and come inside. So, he did. Peaking in, he saw the other 4 just sitting around, hanging out. They all looked up at him and greeted him in various different ways.  
"Hey, how's it going, buddy?" One greeted. They wore a Jean Jacket and turned back red cap, their hair dark, short, and messy. This was Phoebe, she didn't really like Jaydon too much for different reasons, but tolerated him, since everyone else was with him... Well, that's what Jaydon thought.

"Oh hey, Jaydon!" Another greeted. They wore an orange vest and a blue shirt underneath, with a red bandana around their head, keeping their long ginger like hair out of their face and showing their entire forehead. This was Peggy. He didn't really talk to Jaydon much, but he was an okay guy to be around.

One simply glanced up at him and raised their eyebrows at him and looked back down at their phone. They wore a Black Leather Jacket, their collar popped up, with a purple shirt underneath. Their hair was an undercut, short and messy, but swept back. This was Royce. They didn't talk much to anyone at all, but they liked to wear makeup and was pretty good at it. They were particularly very good with nail painting. Jaydon thought they looked pretty with how they applied their makeup and all.  
"Hey, sweetie." One simply said, looking down at their phone as well. They wore a green turtleneck, their hair extremely fluffy with one tuft of hair always seeming to be in their face. They wore large round tinted red glasses and always had their sleeves rolled up. This was Hassan. He and Jaydon didn't talk much, but Jaydon respected him a lot. He was awfully strong, it was almost intimidating.

Jaydon simply nodded and muttered a hello to the group and stood by the table. Blake looked up at him and smiled from the floor, where he sat. "Come on, join me!" He offered, patting the area just beside him. "I got the game up and running, maybe you could try and beat your score from before!" Quickly, Phoebe and Hassan looked up at Jaydon and smiled.

"Yeah!!" They both said at the same time.

Jaydon shifted awkwardly and breathed out a laugh. "Okay... Sure." He stepped over and sat down cross-legged, just beside Blake and stared at the tv. The current score was level 11. Jaydon simply raised an eyebrow at the score and breathed out a laugh. "Alright, up to what?" He asked.

"Oh!" Peggy perked up at pointed at Jaydon, pausing for a moment. "...I dare you to get to level 20 without missing a shot." He said with a grin. Jaydon blinked at him and slowly looked over to the tv and shrugged.  
"Sure, I'll see what I can do." He simply said, Blake, handing the joystick over to him.

Hassan chuckled. "If you get to 30, I'll give you 100 coins." Jaydon paused, the corner of his mouth quirked up as he tilted his head. "And Pizza," Hassan added. Jaydon raised his eyebrows.

"Okay, I'll try." He said before starting the game. From there, he went on, going into a complete focus for the game as he passed one level to the other with almost to no problem. He did pause for a long time in a few levels to get a good hit at the target and to make sure he didn't miss. Every time he shot the bullet, he felt his heart jump, afraid he may miss the shot. Soon, just as he thought it, he missed a shot and immediately, the other's awed in disappointment.

"Come on, Jaydon! That was only level 15!" Phoebe said, crossing her arms. "It didn't even take you to long to get there! Try again!"

Jaydon paused and tapped the controller. He glanced over to Hassan with a raised eyebrow. Hassan just nodded. "Go ahead. Best out of three." Jaydon pursed his lips and nodded, turning back to the tv, starting over the game back to level 1.  
As he did, the others began talking about whatever. Conversing about what happened today and what they were planning on doing the next day or a week from now. Peggy brought up something at work, which was at the Pizza Parlor. Apparently, the Pizzatron 3000 went completely out of whack and just decided to toss everything all over the place, creating a huge mess in the kitchen. One of the employees got hot sauce in their eyes as well, so you could imagine how hectic it was today.

They had to get Gary the Gadget Guy to come and fix everything since it was his machine. Blake breathed out a laugh and lightly elbowed Jaydon. "I bet you would've wanted to be there to see this, huh?" He mocked. Jaydon rolled his eyes and continued with the levels. By now, he was at level 9.

The others laughed briefly before the conversation changed. Blake raised his hand. "I have a speaker here, would any of you like to play some music?" He asked, getting up and walking over to the counter nearby, picking up a small speaker from behind some papers and books. He held it up for the others to see. "Huh, see? I got this from online!" He informed the others.

Hassan raised his hand immediately. "Oh, I have a song!" He quickly said, raising his phone and wiggling it in the air. "I have one of the newest songs from Cadence and the band!" The others looked up at him and gave him a surprised expression.  
"Really?!" Peggy said. "Well put it on, bring in the aux cord, LET'S DO THIS!" Blake breathed out a laugh and nodded, letting Hassan plug in his phone. Not long after, the song came up, which wasn't too loud, much to Jaydon’s relief. He never really liked Cadence and the band, that much. To be honest, he never really understood the appeal for them either.

As he continued with the game, his phone chimed and vibrated in his pocket, startling him and accidentally pressing the shoot button. Luckily, he got a target. Jaydon sighed and immediately, Blake yelled out. "Woah, dude you almost missed that one!" He pointed at the tv and gave a shocked expression. Jaydon just rolled his eyes and reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. Looking down at it he raised an eyebrow. It was from Hector.

_**Unread message** \- "Hey, are you busy at all? I was wondering if you would wanna hang out sometime. I want to show you something!" - 8:25 PM._

_**Unread message** \- "Oh, you're probably busy then, huh? It's okay, I can show you another time if that's okay with you! :-)" - 8:55 PM._

Jaydon stared down at his phone. Honestly, he felt a little bad for not looking at his phone earlier. He could have at least told Hector he was busy and tell him another time. Or cancel plans with Blake, because honestly, he knew Blake wouldn't mind... to an extent, but still. He sighed.

_"Sorry i didn't get to your message. I am busy right now. Yes!! show me another time :D" - 8:56 PM._

Jaydon closed his phone and was about to place it back into his pocket before it chimed. Surprised, he looked back down at it.

_"ok :-))" - 8:56 PM._

Jaydon raised an eyebrow at how fast Hector responded. He must have had his phone in his hand at the moment. He then closed his phone and- "Hey, who are you messaging?" Phoebe asked, looking over Jaydon’s shoulder. "Hector? Who's that?" She asked again.

Quickly, Jaydon frowned and hid his phone to his chest. "Never mind." He said in defence.

Phoebe smiled and poked his cheek. "Come on, we're all friends here!" Jaydon rolled his eyes at her and placed the phone close to him, not wanting to go through the short hassle of tucking it back into his pocket. He shook his head at her and picked up the controller, continuing with the game.

"Hector is someone he met just yesterday," Blake said. Phoebe looked over to him with a raised eyebrow. "Remember that guy I was talking about that looked like him?" Blake continued, pointing at Jaydon. "That's the guy he met." Immediately, Hassan and Phoebe made an 'oh' sound and nodded at each other. Soon, the three began talking about Hector and all they knew about him. Apparently, there were also some pretty nasty rumours about him too, but no one could tell if they were true or not. Considering how Hector acted, his job, and what he was studying in school.

"As if someone like that would do anything like that!" Phoebe said. "He seems too soft..." She pointed her thumb at Jaydon. "Look at him, he looks like he's more likely to do something like all that other than that guy!"  
Jaydon scoffed. "Yeah, thanks." He continued with the game.

Blake breathed out a laugh and nodded. "Yeah... We can only imagine there's someone else on the island who is putting the blame onto these two instead..." He speculated. "Not sure why though... But there has to be a reason."

Hassan shrugged. "Maybe to simply get the blame off of themselves, I guess."

Blake pointed at Hassan and nodded. "Ooh, yeah that's true... I wonder who though." He shook his head and smiled. "Eh, whatever." He dismissed, waving his hand as he did. "So, what other songs do you have?" He asked. Hassan looked down at his phone and scrolled through the list and soon, the two began talking about the kinds of songs Hassan owned.

Jaydon continued to play Astro Barrier. Phoebe looked over to the tv and stared for a moment. "What level are you on?" She asked, stepping closer to Jaydon. He paused and glanced up to the corner of the screen and blinked.  
He shot a target, going to the next level. "19." He replied.

Phoebe gasped, making Royce look up from their phone. "19?! Wow, you're so close to 20!" She smiled and knelt close to him, making him sort of uncomfortable.

He lightly pushed her away and breathed out a laugh. "Yeah... I can't focus when you're right beside me..." He pointed at the screen towards the two yellow targets. "I got to hit those two twice and make sure I don't get the bottom one in the way." He pointed at the smaller yellow target which was going much faster than the one on top.

"Yeah, yeah I know," Phoebe said, reaching down beside him. "So, you got to hit them twice instead of the ones at the bottom?" She pointed at the other normal targets which were basically the same as the top ones but mirrored upside down.

Jaydon nodded. "Yeah, it won't take me too long to get past this." Just as he said that he finished the level. He smiled, his current score currently at 1690. Not long after, the next level loaded and quickly Phoebe let out a yell, which startled Jaydon.

"He made it!" She yelled, pointing at the tv and moving away back to her seat. Quickly, everyone looked over to the tv and Hassan and Blake smiled.

"Hey, you did it!" Hassan said, putting down his phone and walking up to a bag he had nearby. "Just as promised, here you go." He dug into the bag and pulled out a smaller bag, assuming to be the coins. He tossed the bag to Jaydon, who almost missed and fumbled the bag in his hands for a second. "I'll give you the pizza tomorrow, I doubt the pizza parlor is open for delivery at this time." Jaydon paused for a moment and opened the small bag and confirmed there were in fact about 100 coins inside. He raised an eyebrow and glanced back over to the tv. He was only at level 20, not 30.

He shrugged. Oh well, Hassan and the others must have forgotten what they said. He placed the bag beside him where his phone was and was about to continue with the game but paused. Patting the area beside him, he furrowed his eyebrows and glanced down to his side and stopped. His phone was gone. He frantically glanced around him. "Where did my phone go...?" He quietly asked himself, before pausing and turning to face over to Phoebe and shooting her a glare. There, he saw her looking into his small grey flip-phone. She glanced up at him and gave him a grin.

"Ooh, so you do talk to that Hector guy, huh?" She asked, clicking away at the down button.

Jaydon got up and quickly tried grabbing his phone away, only to be stopped by her foot. She rested her foot on his chest, making sure he wouldn't be able to reach forward. "Give back my phone!" He whined, reaching towards her and attempting to move her foot.

The others turned and watched the two. "Wow, damn..." Phoebe continued. "You're pretty nice to this Hector guy, are yea?" She continued to go through the messages. Suddenly, she paused at something and burst out laughing. "I didn't know you have Gary's number!" She loudly announced. Quickly, Jaydon felt his face burn. "A nice and thoughtful message to the Gadget Guy and the first response you get is-- 'How did you get this number?' -- God damn!"

Jaydon again shoved her foot away from him and tried reaching for his phone but was only stopped by Phoebe's other foot. "Everyone knows I was rejected-- Give me back my phone, Phoebe!" He demanded, still fighting with her leg.

Phoebe and just raised her eyebrows at him and continued clicking down on his phone. "Come on, Jaydon! We're all friends here, we can read each other’s messages!" Just as she said that his phone chimed. Pausing, Phoebe looked down at the phone. "Ooh, it's from Hector!" She announced, reading the message to herself. As she did, she made a face.

Quickly, Jaydon felt his heart jump at the mention of Hector messaging him once again. Once more, he began to vigorously fight with her leg. He knew full well he was able to simply move her leg out of the way, but that included him hurting her in some way and he didn't really want to harm her at all. So, he was stuck with just pushing and shoving her leg out of the way. "Come on, Phoebe. Give him back his phone." Peggy said, standing nearby the speaker. "It's not nice to invade someone’s privacy like that, you know!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and sighed, lowering her leg and shutting the phone with a 'clack'. "Fiiine..." She handed back his phone and quickly, Jaydon grabbed it and frowned at her, going back into the spot he was previously in. He plopped back down and looked down at his phone to see what Hector had said. What Phoebe did, was a usual thing she did to the others a lot. Which was why they being pretty careful when they had their phones out. It was a very annoying thing she did, but... They all learned to just deal with it, especially Blake.

Jaydon huffed in annoyance and opened his phone to see what Hector had said.

_"Can i ask who you're with? Are you with anyone?" - 9:15 PM._

Jaydon blinked at his phone and glanced up at the others. Peggy stood by Phoebe, probably scolding her about taking others stuff and all. Hassan and Blake stood by the speaker, the music still playing as they talked about the music they were listening too. Royce was still on their phone, probably playing some game app or texting to someone.

_"Yeah I'm with some friends ^^ why" - 9:16 PM._

Jaydon wondered why Hector would want to know. Maybe he was looking for someone he knew and was thinking maybe that someone was with him... For some reason. Why the heck would Jaydon know anyone who knew Hector? Soon, his phone chimed.

_"Friends? Can i ask what their names are?" - 9:17 PM._

Jaydon raised an eyebrow and hummed nervously, unsure what to make of this. He scratched his chin and began typing. _"Phoebe, Peggy, Royce, Hassan, and Blake :~)" - 9:17 PM_. He knew he probably shouldn't give out his friend’s names like this. But, he trusted Hector.

_"Ooh lol i think i met them before!" - 9:17 PM._

He raised an eyebrow at the message but remembered Hector worked at the Coffee shop. So, it was possible he might have met them before. Jaydon stared at his phone screen and blinked, unsure what to say in reply. He wasn't really used to someone saying they met another before, so his mind went blank. As he tried thinking of a reply, his shoulder was tapped. Turning his head, he saw it was Royce.

They smiled. "Hey, I found something out online and I want to use your fingernails to try it out." They simply said, sitting back into the spot they were previously at. Jaydon paused and slowly raised an eyebrow, looking down at their fingernails, then down to his. He stared at his fingers for a second before shrugging.

"Sure." Getting up, he walked over to Royce and sat down beside them. Quickly, they picked up a bag they had nearby them and dug into it, pulling out some nail polish and other objects that came with nail painting. Jaydon watched them set up everything, interested with how they paint. Also, a bit curious as to what they had learned not long ago.

Blake turned to look at the two. "Jaydon, are you done with the game?" he asked. Jaydon nodded at him and Blake smiled. "Alright, cool! I wanna play some Thin Ice." he hopped down from his seat and fell to his knees, picking up the controller and switching out the games. Jaydon watched him play, as he waited for Royce to finish setting up. He thought Blake was pretty good at Thin Ice. Jaydon never really figured out how to get past most of the levels and ended up skipping a lot of the ice you were supposed to melt. So, he was pretty terrible at this game.

Suddenly, the smell of nail polish overwhelmed him. Turning his head, Royce took his hand and rested it on a pillow that was covered by a face cloth. They stared at his hand for a moment before closing the bottle of nail polish and setting it aside, quickly pulling out a nail filer. They sighed and went on with it, Jaydon sort of just letting it happen.


	4. :~)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hang out

"See ya tomorrow, guys!" Phoebe said, waving. Peggy nodded and waved, muttering a 'goodnight' to the others as he closed the door. Blake, Jaydon, and Royce waved back in unison, all saying goodnight as well. Once the door closed, Blake sighed and rested his back onto the seat of his couch.

"Geeze, what time is it?" he asked, looking over to Royce and Jaydon. 

Royce paused and picked up their phone. "11:59." they replied, dropping their phone back to their side. Blake raised his eyebrows, looking surprised. He breathed out a laugh and stretched his back, groaning as he did.

"Gosh, it doesn't feel like 11, it still feels like 10 or something." he yawned, looking over to Jaydon. "So, what are you going to do tomorrow?" He asked. Jaydon looked up from his hand and paused, thinking about his question. He shrugged.

"I guess I'm going to the stage tomorrow." He raised his hand and viewed the nail polish work on his hand. His nails were a gradient color of two shades of blue and surprisingly, wasn't as shiny as nail polish usually was. Matte, you can call it. They were also spotted with white dots. He tilted his head. "Um... I guess I'll also see what's happening at the lighthouse." He looked back over to Blake. "Rockhopper is here and... I guess he brought some stuff or whatever."

Blake nodded. "Yeah, I heard he brought a lot of plants and all that." He tilted his head and stared up at the ceiling. "I wonder what the plants are." He pondered.

Jaydon shrugged. "I dunno, tropical I guess." Royce breathed out a laugh and leaned back, lightly patting Jaydon's left hand. He turned his head and saw that Royce had basically done the same thing on the other hand. Jaydon smiled and raised both of his hands and stared at them, wiggling his fingers as he did. Blake raised an eyebrow and leaned forward.

"Let's see your nails!" He requested. Jaydon turned his hands and showed them off to Blake, who smiled. "Wow, they look really nice!" He complimented.

Royce just smiled, putting all the nail stuff away. "Yeah, sorry about the smell." They said. Blake just waved his hand dismissively.

"Ahh, don't worry about it!" He assured. "It's not that bad, I can just air out the place in a bit." He pointed at Jaydon. "Plus, his nails look great I think you're a good nail artist." Jaydon nodded, agreeing with Blake. Royce breathed out a laugh, brushing their hair back and muttering ‘thanks’ to them. They placed their bag onto their lap and sighed.

"I'm going home now. It's late and I have stuff planned for tomorrow." They sat up and threw their bag over their shoulder. Blake looked up at them and smiled.

"Oh, yeah sure, okay!" He waved. "Goodnight, Royce!"

They nodded their head and turned, walking towards the door and muttering a goodnight to the two, closing the door behind them with a soft click. Jaydon and Blake sighed and sat in silence for a long moment, the music still playing. The music wasn't as loud and upbeat as Cadence and the band’s music, it was much softer on the ears, compared to them. Jaydon raised an eyebrow. "Hey, who made this song?" He asked.

Blake hummed, looking over to him. He paused for a moment before realizing what he said. "Oh, um." He paused to think. "I dunno, someone named 'DD' or something." Jaydon blinked and sighed, looking back up at the ceiling.

He hummed. "Oh... Well, I like their songs." He stated. The two continued to sit silently, the music playing softly as they sat with their thoughts. Jaydon blinked as his mind wondered, going from one topic to another. Soon, his mind fell onto the thought of Hector. Jaydon's mouth twitched at the thought of him. Something about Hector just captivated him so much and he wasn't sure why he was just so good... And he hadn't even known the guy for so long.

Soon, Jaydon sighed, picking up his phone and looking at the time. 12:10. He made a face and looked at his nails for a moment, before putting them back down. Again, he sighed. "Maybe I should go home as well." He lifted his head and looked over to Blake and saw his friend falling asleep, his back rested against the couch. Jaydon breathed out a laugh. "You look like you're falling asleep."

Blake opened his eyes and looked over to him, pausing for a moment. He smiled. "Ah... Yeah, I should go to bed..." He chuckled and lifted himself up from the floor and walked over to the counter, turning off the music. Jaydon sat up and tucked his phone into his pocket, picking up his sweater nearby and pulling it over his head as he walked over to the front.

Opening the door and turning around. Blake rested his chin in his hand, at the counter. "Goodnight, I'll see you at work tomorrow," Jaydon said, waving as he did. Blake smiled, his eyes still closed. He nodded and hummed in reply. With that, Jaydon shut the door and left back home.

He breathed out a sigh, his breath rising in visible puffs. It was a good thing Jaydon had brought that sweater when he came over, tonight was pretty cold. A cold and moonless night It looked to be. The air was so cold it almost hurt to breathe. Jaydon made a face and adjusted his hoody. He should have gone home earlier or brought a jacket instead, it was so bitterly cold outside, he regretted coming out. "Whatever, I live nearby anyway..." He muttered to himself, shoving his hands into his hoodie pockets.  
Looking up at the sky, he saw the stars were out, with only a few clouds here and there in the sky, some starts shining brighter than others. He raised an eyebrow and looked back down, glancing around the area. It was empty, like usual at this time. He thought about that music artist he heard back at Blakes house. Honestly, he kind of liked that song which was playing. It was very... nice, for a lack of a better word. but the name 'DD' just didn't bring anything up when he thought of it.

Maybe a quick internet search would bring up a few things. He just didn't have a computer, so he would have to go to the ski lodge, or to the one down at the mine, or borrow someone’s laptop or computer... But seeing how awkward he is around people, he would probably end up going to the mines or the ski lodge. Most likely the ski lodge though, the mines always creeped him out for some reason.

He'll find that artist later, though. Jaydon was pretty tired and cold right now, so tomorrow after work would do okay... Or just asking Blake when he wasn't so tired, that sounds like a better plan. As he walked, he thought about what would happen if the actor for Dom didn't come in tomorrow. Maybe, Blake would replace them... Or maybe Hassan. Or someone completely different. Whoever it may be, he kind of hoped it would be someone he knew.  
Most likely not though. He sighed and continued his trek back home.


	5. Uh Oh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whoopsie Doopsie

Once Jaydon got home, he ended up falling asleep on the couch, watching the various cooking shows that seemed to come on at late hours of the night. Sprawled out across the couch, he was suddenly awakened by his phone ringing, startling him awake. Looking around, confused, he searched for his phone in his tired gaze and confusion. Looking over the couch, he saw it was on the table. Groaning, he sat up and walked over to his phone, answering it. "Hello?" He said in his groggy tired voice.

"Hey, It's me the director." 

Jaydon paused and glanced down at the caller id and confirmed it was them. He raised an eyebrow. "Oh. Hey, what's going on?" He asked, rubbing his eye.

The director sighed and paused for a moment before speaking. "Look, we can't come into work today." They said, their voice quiet. 

Jaydon was immediately concerned. "Okay... Why?" he asked. The Director paused once more, this time for a long moment. They sighed once more.

"Look, just... Just don't come into work today, no one will be there... Something happened last night and this is out of respect." They finally said. Jaydon paused for a long moment and furrowed his eyebrows, obviously still confused as to what was going on.

The director breathed out. "I'll take your silence that you're confused, are you?"

Jaydon nodded, before shaking his head, realizing the director couldn't see his nodding. "Yeah, I am." He replied.

The director cleared their throat and paused. "Early this morning, they found Jean." They said. Jaydon blinked and raised an eyebrow.

"Were they missing?" He asked.  
"Yes, for about 24 hours just yesterday. We were not informed about this until around 5 in the afternoon, just after work." The Director continued. They paused for a moment once more and again, cleared their throat. "The search and rescue team found Jean... In the river."

Jaydon made a face. "In the river?" He asked. "What the hell was he doing in there?"

The director let out an exasperated sigh. "God-- He was found dead, Jaydon." They finally said. Jaydon paused and made a face at himself.

"Oh." He let out an awkward laugh and sighed. "Ah... I'm sorry." He pursed his lips and scratched the back of his neck and sighed. "Yeah. Okay... Goodbye."

The director muttered a 'goodbye' and the two hung up. Jaydon put his phone down onto the table and swallowed hard. The thought of someone he worked with being dead was... weird. Jean was fine just the other day and knowing that they're now gone was a weird concept to him. Yeah, people left his life a lot, but they were not gone because they were dead. Like his sister, for example. She left because of... Well. He didn't really know why she left. She just kind of did and he never knew why, but he does usually get the occasional letter from her, but she wasn't dead.

He felt bad for whoever knew Jean. They must have had a really rough few hours, just to find out they were dead at the end of it all. It was pretty sad to think about. He didn't know Jean enough to really get sad about them at all, but he felt bad. It's just a damn shame.

Actually, when he thought about it... Death was a weird thing to think about happening on the island. It never happened at all and when it did, it was usually an accident. This, however, did not seem like an accident. Obviously. Just thinking about this whole ordeal, didn't sit right with him. He sighed and swept his hair back and looked out the window of the kitchen, leaning against the table. "I'm going back to sleep." He muttered to himself, picking up his phone and walking over to his bedroom. He decided to just finally take off his pants and just. Sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is short i didn't even notice until now lmao


	6. DEATH

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> idk character cries lmao

Jaydon was suddenly awakened by his phone ringing once again, startling him from his sleep. He seemed to be awakened a lot by his phone. He should put his phone on silent tonight. Glancing around in confusion, he quickly found his found on the nightstand nearby and picked it up. "Hello?" He said, sounding much more annoyed than he meant.

"Jaydon? It's me, Hector."

Quickly, Jaydon sat up in his bed, sweeping his hair out of his face. He cleared his throat and paused. "... Uh. Hey." Again, he still sounded much more annoyed than be anticipated to be.  
"Oh... I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

Jaydon blinked. "Ah... Yeah, you did." He said rubbing the sleep out of his eye.

Hector cleared his throat and paused. "Is it--" His voice cracked. "I'm sorry-- We just met, but. Can I... Can I come to your house?" he asked, his voice brittle.

"Oh..." Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows, finally realizing something was wrong. "Um. Yeah, sure. What's wrong?" He asked.

Hector paused for a long moment. He sniffled and breathed out a laugh. "I'm sorry, I always seem to cry a lot..." He cleared his throat. "I'm not... Doing so good right now... and I don't really know who to turn too." He admitted.

Jaydon paused, thinking on what he should do. He honestly thought Hector was right, he did cry a lot, but that didn't stop Jaydon from feeling bad and worried for him. He glanced around his room, looking for where he tossed his pants. "Where are you, I can come to get you." He said, tossing the blankets off of himself. Hector again paused for a long moment, letting out a couple of quiet sobs as he tried getting his words out.

"I'm by... I'm by the clock." He paused. "At the snow forts... I can meet you over at the town and maybe, hopefully... I'm going the right way."

"Oh... Well, I live just nearby Town Central. Just go left and I'll meet you around there." Hector hummed and quickly hung up. Jaydon paused and looked down at his phone, confirming that Hector had hung up. Honestly, he couldn't help but feel really excited about having Hector coming over to his house, but at the same time, he was pretty worried. There was something wrong and honestly, he had an idea of what could be wrong. Quickly, he pulled on his pants, grabbed his phone, and quickly picked up some stuff off from the floor, putting them away and rushed out the door to where ever Hector could be.

He quickly walked towards Town Central and thought to himself. Did Hector know Jean? Were they friends or something? Or was Hector upset for a completely different reason? He sighed, he just... Had Jean on his mind right now. Which was weird, he didn't know this person at all, but he just couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards them.

**_(Jaydon sympathetic? Holy Shit)_ **

Glancing around, he noticed how clear the sky was today. Not a single cloud was seen as he walked and soon he heard the sound of many islanders playing in the distance. Sounded like there was an event for sledding today, just based on the sounds and what he could see just on the horizon towards Ski Hill. Many islanders stood around the area as some slid down the hill, it seemed like--

He paused and squinted, straining his eyes to see in the distance. He raised an eyebrow. "Hey, isn't that Gary?" He asked himself. In the distance, he was able to see the familiar white coat, someone wore. There was also a huge machine, but he had no idea what it could be, he didn't read the newspaper lately. So, it could be something that was going on that he had no idea about. He shrugged it off and continued walking towards Town Central, he wasn't too far from there by now and would only take about a minute or two.

Jaydon wondered if Hector had eaten anything at all today, maybe he could make him something to eat... He wondered if that was weird. Whatever he could just say he was making something for himself and he could give Hector the offer since Jaydon hadn't eaten at all today. As he walked, he was suddenly pulled out of thought by someone yelling his name. Pausing and looking around, he saw it was Phoebe and Peggy.

"Jaydon!" Peggy called out again. "Where're you going in such a rush?" He asked. Jaydon paused and furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't realize he was walking very fast and soon came to a stop. He opened his mouth and let out an awkward 'um'. Phoebe and

Peggy soon caught up with him and stopped beside him. "So, where're you going?" Peggy asked.

"Town Central." Jaydon replied, looking towards the direction of town. Just over a hill, he was able to see the tops of the buildings. "I'm picking up someone." He vaguely finished.

Phoebe raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Who could that be?" She asked, looking in the direction of Town Central. "We could walk with you there! Me and Peggy are going to the coffee shop, anyway." 

Jaydon blinked and adjusted his handkerchief, nodding as he did. "Um... What's at the coffee shop?" He asked, not caring if he seemed a little nosey.

"Ehh, it’s just Hassan and Blake who are over there," Phoebe replied. "Since Blake was off work today..." She shrugged. "I dunno, I guess he just invited us out."

Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows. He couldn't help but feel a little left out, but oh well. Going over the hill, they saw Town Central and coming up the hill was the familiar face Jaydon had come to recognize. "Hector!" he called out, gaining the man’s attention. Hector looked up from the ground and smiled at the sight of Jaydon, but quickly, his smile faded at the sight of Phoebe and Peggy standing beside him. He walked up to Jaydon and pointed at the two.

"... Who are they?" He quietly asked. 

Jaydon looked over to his two friends and paused. He turned back. "This is Phoebe and Peggy." He replied, gesturing towards them. "They're my friends." The two smiled and waved at Hector, who didn't say anything in reply.

"Hey, you're Hector, huh?" Phoebe said, crossing her arms. "Nice to finally meet you!"

Peggy nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Nice to meet you." Hector pursed his lips, glancing away towards Jaydon, seeming a bit nervous. "We heard quite a handful of things about you and I can see why Blake was so taken off guard of your appearance." Peggy continued, adjusting his vest. Quickly, Phoebe bumped Peggy's arm, making him pull his arm away.

Hector breathed out a laugh. "Yeah, I hear there's a lot going around about me and... Well, Jaydon." He rubbed his arm and swallowed, looking over to Jaydon, who paused and looked over to him as well. Jaydon kind of furrowed his eyebrows, unsure what Hector was trying to silently say; He was never really good at catching hints and subtle gestures.

"So, what are you two going to be up too?" Phoebe asked. 

Nervously, Hector chuckled. "I-... I don't know." He admitted. "Maybe do whatever Jaydon does in his free time, I guess." He picked at his fingernails and avoided eye contact with the two and quickly, Peggy and Phoebe caught on with the feeling. Peggy nervously scratched the back of his neck and chuckled, pointing behind him with his thumb.

"Well... I'm sure Hassan and Blake are waiting for us at the Coffee Shop." Peggy explained, before raising his hand. He nodded his head once and turned around with Phoebe following just behind. "See ya later, Jaydon!" Peggy called out, as Phoebe waved goodbye to them. Almost immediately after they walked away, Jaydon heard them start talking to each other about whatever.

Jaydon waved goodbye to them and glanced over to Hector, who was still looking down at his fingernails, nervously picking at them. Honestly, Jaydon felt a little bad for suddenly making Hector meet some new people without him really... Knowing. That must have been really awkward and unexpected for him. Jaydon rubbed the back of his neck and gestured his hand, pointing in the direction of where his home was. So, quickly and quietly, the two made their way on over.

Jaydon opened the door to his home and let Hector in, who was pretty quiet the entire time they walked here. Hector paused and glanced around Jaydon’s house with a raised eyebrow. Perhaps he wasn't really expecting something or was expecting something, but it kind of made Jaydon a little nervous as Hector continued to look around. Jaydon took off his shoes and awkwardly walked in, turning to look at Hector; Who was still standing at the door.

"You can sit at the couch if you want." Jaydon suggested, trying to find something to do with his hands. He was simply very nervous about having someone here. Hector glanced over to the couch and hummed in reply, taking off his shoes and walking over to the couch, taking a seat.

Still, Jaydon felt extremely nervous and awkward. He wasn't sure what to do or say to Hector. He would ask if everything was alright, but he wasn't sure if Hector was really comfortable with answering that question. So, awkwardly, Jaydon walked over to the counter and reached into one of the lower cupboards and pulled out a pot, filling it with water and placing it onto the stove. He was thinking of making some soup, his hunger had kind of hit him not long ago and thought that he should make something to eat.

"Um." Jaydon started. “Would you like some soup?” He asked, looking over to Hector. 

Hector peaked over the couch and paused to think. He shrugged and looked away. “I dunno... I guess so.” He replied.

Jaydon tapped the handle of the pot and stared down into the water, which started to hiss as it slowly began to heat up. He made sure the heat on the stove wasn’t too high, he had a feeling he would have to leave it for quite a while. He pursed his lips and glanced over to Hector again. “Would you like something to drink?” He asked. “I can make some... Some tea if you’d like.” Hector simply shook his head and continued to stare at-- What Jaydon assumed was the wall. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows and thought. He honestly wasn’t sure what to do, Hector was upset and Jaydon couldn’t think of anything to say or do, without it making it so... Awkward.

He sighed and walked over to the couch and looked down at Hector, who was fiddling around with his sweater buttons. Jaydon opened his mouth and hesitated before speaking.

“Is there--... I mean-- Are you feeling alright?” Jaydon stuttered out nervously as he continued to look down at Hector curiously. Hector sat there in silence before; Almost without warning, started to cry once more. Jaydon tensed up at the sudden action and went around the couch and sat down beside his look-a-like. Hector let out quiet sobs and wiped his face, shaking his head as he did. Jaydon stared and raised his hand, hesitantly patting Hectors back in an attempt to comfort him.

Hector breathed out and sniffled. “No... No, I’m not.” He admitted. “I came into work today and everyone started avoiding me and were practically afraid of me as if I were some bad guy or whatever!” He continued. “I’m sure it’s because of what happened this morning.” He rubbed his eyes and paused to clear his throat. “This morning they found a body for someone and everyone automatically suspected me! I have never met the person and I know I should feel bad for what happened to them, but I can’t-- Not when everyone is thinking I did it!”

He let out a loud yell and curled up, hiding his face on his legs as he continued to cry.

Jaydon sat there, unsure what to say or do. This guy just started spilling out more and more things that seemed to be bothering him and all Jaydon could do was listen as Hector continued going on his tangent of misery. However, Jaydon didn’t mind. Something about this made him feel... Closer to Hector, somehow. Hector only continued to spill out his emotions on Jaydon, sobbing almost uncontrollably and all Jaydon could do was pat his back to try and comfort and calm him down.

After what seemed like 20 minutes or so, Hector finally calmed down and stopped ranting, leaving the two in a long silence. Hector sighed and wiped his face, breathing out a laugh, glancing away from Jaydon. “...Sorry. I kind of went off there, didn’t I?” He asked.

Jaydon shrugged. “It’s... okay.” He assured awkwardly. Jaydon never really had to deal with someone just breaking down in front of him much in his life, besides the... Few times. Although, besides those few times, he didn’t really learn much on what to do to help. He gave Hector his space and twiddled around with his thumbs, glancing away. Soon, the sound of bubbling and hissing caught his attention and Jaydon felt his heart jump. He forgot about the water he was warming up.

Quickly, he stood up and rushed to the kitchen, taking the pot off the stove. He looked into the pot and noticed most of the water had vapoured away, leaving the awkward white mark in the pot, showing where the water previously was filled too. He sighed and stepped to the sink, filling it up with water again and simply placing it back onto the stove. Once he did, he looked into the cupboards and pulled out a box of soup, digging into it and placing the package onto the side.

Not long after, Hector made up a conversation. Something about Coffee and the recent things he heard about in the newspaper. He was surprised when Jaydon admitted he didn't read the paper much and proceeded to explain what was happening that week. Apparently, there was a huge sliding competition, on who can get to the bottom of Ski hill the fastest. Gary was at the hill for that reason, letting islanders test out his new invention. Which Hector nor Jaydon really knew the name of... However, Jaydon knowing Gary; It was probably Tobbagan3000 or something silly like that.

Soon, Hector began asking about If Jaydon did any sort of sports. Of course, Jaydon didn't really hesitate to reply, saying; "No, not really." and explaining how he finds sports to be lacklustre for him. He does workout sometimes whenever he feels like it, but It was usually out of boredom though. Hector just listened as Jaydon continued going on about this, explaining how he just finds Soccer, Baseball, and Hockey to just be really stupid sports and how he just really didn't like them in general. There was no reason for him to not like them but here he is.

Hector again, asked him another question. He asked about Jaydon’s general fitness and if he ever participated in anything of that sort, like Track or whatever. Jaydon shrugged in reply and explained he did track in high school, but that was it. He also explained he did run around the island almost every morning, before work. But since he went to bed late last night, he didn't do that this morning. So, he guessed he was pretty fit.

Jaydon was soon pulled out of the conversation by the sound of bubbling water. The water had already begun to boil and so, he picked up the packet and opened it, dumping the contents in. Jaydon watched the water become the green color that most packaged soup had. Honestly, he wasn't really sure why soup had this color now that he thought about it... Probably had something to do with the vegetables or whatever… Or the chicken broth.

Quickly, the smell began to fill the air and out from the corner of his eye, he spotted Hector looking over the couch backrest. Jaydon couldn't really tell if Hector was interested or not.

The rest of the time Hector was there, they only spoke about small things. Their chats were short but enjoyable. Apparently, Hector had a Green puffle named Seed and was apparently a very annoying animal, just based off of what Hector explained. Chewing on furniture and in general, being loud. Although, Jaydon didn't want to admit he wasn't very fond of puffles, to begin with. Something about them just... Irked him. Which was a reason why he didn't own a pet at all. 


	7. wrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He Hangs Out Alone

Jaydon laid on the couch, staring at the ceiling. Hector had left a while after the soup was ready. He did have the soup and their conversation was overall pretty mundane. One would usually lose interest in someone after finding out they were a pretty boring individual. Not Jaydon however. His silly blind liking towards Hector was still strong as ever and this hang out only made his liking towards him much stronger... Annoyingly enough.

He didn't really understand completely, but something about Hector simply fascinated him. Jaydon felt the need to know him on a much more personal level and want to be there for him and stay with him. Although, these feelings towards Hector felt... Unnatural? He wasn't sure why, but something inside him was telling him that something about Hector wasn't right. However, he ignored this. He loved the feeling Hector brought when he was around and he wished he could simply be around him all the time.  
Suddenly, he frowned at himself and rubbed his face, letting out an exasperated sigh as he did. "God, why am I even like this?" he mumbled through his hands. Looking over to the Tv, a cooking show was playing. It was his favourite show, run by the Croteau twins. They were talented in many arts; Culinary being the most prominent in their careers.

Watching for a bit, it seemed the two were making something with some kind of meat. It was very fancy, Jaydon thought. He kind of wished he knew how to do that. Jaydon only knew the basics of cooking, like making a good egg and knowing what 'al dente' meant, for example. He also knew how to make stock out of scraps and he could have done that earlier, but he didn't think of it at the time. Damn, he should have impressed Hector with that. But thinking about it now, made him realize that it would take hours to make, with all the simmering and everything that comes with making stock.

Jaydon sat up on the couch and glanced down at his hand, looking at his fingernails. The way they looked still impressed him a whole lot and honestly, he was a bit surprised Hector hadn't said anything about them. Usually, others would comment on his nails when Royce would paint them. He was a bit like a walking, talking, 'advertisement' for Royce, now that he thought about it. Others would ask, either laugh at him or be genuinely interested and then ask who did them. Only for Jaydon to see them having painted fingernails a few hours later when he was in town.

The sound of a distant muffled tune played, catching Jaydon’s attention. It was his washer, telling him his laundry was done. Jaydon sat for a moment, listening to the upbeat tune. It wasn't long and he wasn't really sure what the song was, but it sounded familiar. "Whatever." He thought as he got up, making his way to the bathroom. Opening the door, the soft pulsing light confirmed they were finished. Glancing around, he noted he should clean the sink, spotting bits of toothpaste and soap scum from where he stood.

Making a face, he turned and opened the washer and dryer, dragging out the wet clothes and dropping them into the dryer above. Quickly, he pulled out a dryer sheet and tossed it in, closing both doors and turning on the machine. He turned and walked out, going towards the hallway closet where he held all of the cleaning supplies in.

Opening the door, he paused at the darkness the closet showed. Glancing around, he searched for the cleaning products. Remembering they were on the top shelf, he stepped in and reached up. However, he paused. The hollow thud; once he stepped in; reminded him of the basement his house had. Glancing down, he stared at the carpeted floor and sighed. He never liked the basement, it was just so... Unsettling. Jaydon honestly wasn't sure why his home even had a basement, but he thought his house must have been some of the few homes which had a basement built in.

He remembered when he first found the basement. He didn't know it was there, and the first week he moved in, he stepped on the door and fell in. The door gave away and collapsed, making Jaydon slide down the stairs on whatever was left of the door and slammed into the other door at the bottom of the stairs. God, that hurt. He never really told anyone about this basement he had, understanding it was creepy to have. So, one day he fixed the door himself and covered it up with a carpet. The basement ended up becoming a place for storage. Reaching up and patting around the shelf, he found the supplies and took them down, leaving the closest hastily.


	8. New ? ? ? WOWOW

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lmao rip

Jaydon stood nearby the set, watching the stage Director being mouthed off by someone he didn't recognize. Apparently, they were very peeved by the way the Director was handling everything and started telling them how everything they were doing wasn't the correct way to do it. All the Director could do was stand there and listen to this Stranger. When walking in, apparently Jaydon didn't put the props away correctly and some were lost, like the magnifying glass Detective Hammer needed and the Ruby. No one said anything, so he didn't get yelled at by this person. 

However, he didn't doubt what was said. He was pretty sure he most likely didn't put them away correctly. The actors watched this person continue to speak loudly to the Director, unsure what to do or say. Jaydon glanced behind him and saw Blake making a face. So, he walked towards him. Blake breathed out and shook his head lightly. "Who is this person?" He whispered. "It's like they know everything about this kind of stuff... Do you think they went to theater or something?" He asked. Jaydon glanced over to them and saw them tapping a script and quickly pointed at the actors while still looking at the Director. 

Jaydon just shrugged. Blake pursed his lips, still watching the scene continue to unfold not far from them. He breathed out a laugh and tapped Jaydon on the shoulder. "Well, you better get to work." He said, walking away to backstage. Jaydon watched him for a bit, with a raised eyebrow before turning and stepped forward. Suddenly, he was stopped by this person, who pointed at him sternly.

"You. Tell me your name." They stated. Jaydon paused and flickered his eyes around the room, almost a little intimidated.

"Jaydon." Quickly, the person wrote down his name on some paper and turned to the other actors, asking the same question. He wasn't quite sure why they did but ignored it. Not long after, they started explaining things about acting and how everyone should have been off script already and how it's only about two weeks before the play comes out. Jaydon thought that was plenty of time but stopped mid-thought.

Glancing around the room, he realized there was no actor for Dom still. By now, he was sure an actor would have come by and replaced Jean by now... Hm. Seems like he wasn't the only one too notice. Immediately, this person pointed out the missing actor and turned to the Director, asking them about it. The Director explains the missing actors reason and explains they are trying to find an actor to replace Jean but had no luck so far. For a moment, the person paused at the reason, looking sorry, but soon looked to be thinking about something. "Then how about you be the new Dom." They suggested. 

"Wait-- What?!" The director exclaimed as they began to stuttered out words and shook their head. "N-No, I can't be! I'm the Director!" They pointed out. The person breathed out a laugh and took their hat.

"Nope, I'm the new Director now." They stated. "You know all the lines, don't you?"

The Director paused and continued to stutter for a short moment. "N-... Well, Yes. I do... But--" 

"Well then, you're the perfect candidate!" The person persisted. "There's only two weeks and it would completely pointless to get a new actor now!" They argued. The Director paused and thought about their argument. 

Soon, they crossed their arms and sighed in defeat. "Fine, alright." They walked over to the costume chest and dug around in it for a while. The person smiled and placed their hands onto their hips.

"Alright, when we're done here; You all have to put your costume somewhere you can find it and make sure not to misplace your stuff and don't touch each other’s stuff either!" They ordered. The actors glanced around at each other and nodded in agreement. Soon the Director-- Well... The old Director came around the corner, fully dressed as Dom. The person grinned and clapped their hands once. "Okay! Let's get to work then! But first!" They paused for a moment, glancing at everyone. "My name is Willow, nice to meet you!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AGAIN short chapter lmao


	9. haha

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That's Stupid

Turns out the old Directors name was Skye. Jaydon didn't know this but apparently, everyone else did. Nice. After putting everything away and doing just as he was told, he left the stage rather quickly, not even saying anything to Blake or the others. Typical of him on most days. As he walked back home, Blake ran out after him, yelling his name and waving his arm around as he did. Jaydon sighed and turned his head towards the other, giving him an unimpressed look. Blake seemed to ignore it and smiled at him. "Hey man, where're you off to?" he asked.

Jaydon shrugged and thought about it for a moment. "Home." He replied. 

Blake scoffed and crossed his arms. "Home? So, you're not busy then, huh?" He asked. Again, Jaydon just shrugged and continued walking with Blake following just behind. "Hey, I was wondering if you would like to come and hang out with me, Phoebe, and Peggy! We're going to the Coffee Shop to hang out." Blake explained, looking up at Jaydon with a smile.

Jaydon let out a long sigh and paused for a moment. He was thinking on cleaning up his house today and basically stay away from everyone today since he wasn't really in a social mood at all right now; After what happened at the stage with Skye and Willow. Then again, Hector works at the Coffee Shop... So, there was a huge chance for him to see Hector there and say Hi at least or something. Glancing over to Blake, he saw him giving him big puppy eyes as if he actually really wanted him to follow along. Jaydon breathed out a laugh and sighed. "Alright, fine... I'll come along." He said, giving in.

Immediately, Blake face lit up and he nodded, excited with the outcome. "Cool! Let's go then, they're waiting for us there already!" Jaydon paused, obviously he didn't think they would already be there. "Well--" Blake continued, looking a little nervous. "Peggy is there. When we get there, we'll be waiting for Phoebe." He informed him, seeming to know what Jaydon was thinking for the moment. Jaydon nodded and followed Blake over to Town central. As they walked, Blake talked about mundane things Jaydon wasn't really interested in at all, like the Penguin Band and Cadence for example. He also talked about how the manager at the clothes shop had to restock and order almost everything because apparently, the assistant forgot to do that last week. Which explained why there was a shortage at the shop when Jaydon went by there the other day.

It didn't take them to long to get to Town Central and to the Coffee shop since they were only two areas away. Once walking in, Jaydon quickly looked over to the counter and saw that Hector wasn't there and immediately, disappointment washed over him. He sighed and glanced over to where Blake was looking and quickly, the two found Peggy sitting on one of the couches, looking into a cup he had. He seemed to have something on his mind and Jaydon idly thought about what it could be. "Heeey, Peggy!" Blake greeted. Peggy looked up from his cup and glanced around, a little surprised from the sudden greeting. 

Looking up at the two he smiled and adjusted his seating. "Oh, hey you guys." He pushed over for them to sit down and continued looking into the cup. Blake sat down, along with Jaydon. Glancing over to Peggy, Blake paused and looked around the busy Shop.

"Did Phoebe ever make it here?" He asked. Peggy simply shook his head and sighed.

"To be honest, I hadn't seen her at all today or even last night," Peggy informed him. "I can't tell if I did something wrong or if she had to go somewhere in a rush and didn't get the chance to message or at all." He looked up at Blake with a worried look. "Do you think I did something wrong yesterday?? What If she's mad at me for something I did and she's not talking to me because of it? What if--"

"Woah, calm down, man," Blake said, patting Peggy's shoulder. "You're overthinking, dude. I'm sure she isn't mad at you. She's probably just... Sleeping or something." He assured.

"4 in the afternoon?" Jaydon asked. Blake turned over to him and lightly elbowed him. Jaydon breathed out a laugh and continued to listen in.

"Yes! 4 in the afternoon. She must have pulled an all-nighter or something like that." Blake continued. "So, don't worry about it, man! I'm sure she's fine and simply doesn't feel like being social right now. You know, one of those days!"

Peggy pursed his lips and paused for a long moment before sighing. He nodded and glanced over to the two. "Would you like me to pay for your drinks or something?" He asked. Immediately, Blake jumped onto the offer as Jaydon rolled his eyes at him. Jaydon simply shook his head and told Peggy that it's okay, he could pay himself. Since he did have the money to do just that. 

Soon, a barista walked up to the group and smiled at them. "Hi, would you like anything to drink today?" They asked in their obvious customer service voice. Peggy and Blake muttered to each other and soon nodded.

"Yeah! Can I have a coffee with one cream, two sugars?" Peggy asked. The barista nodded, looking down at a little notepad and wrote down his order. They looked over to Blake and Jaydon and asked if they wanted something too.

Blake nodded. "I'll have coffee as well, but just one sugar and no cream." Quickly, the barista wrote down his order and soon glanced over to Jaydon, asking if he wanted anything too.

Jaydon paused and glanced away in thought, he didn't bother to think about his order before but felt a little stupid for not doing just that. "Um... I'll just have. Coffee, I guess."

The barista nodded. "Is there anything in your coffee?" They asked. Jaydon just shook his head and continued to glance away from their gaze, a little nervous. He wasn't really good at ordering as quickly as the other two. Soon the barista finished and smiled at the three. "Okay, I'll be back in a bit with your order!" and quickly, they took the cup Peggy had and turned and walked away. Quickly, Blake and Peggy began talking about the barista, mentioning how they had seen them at the mine the other day and wondering what they were doing at the time. Jaydon simply sighed and glanced around the coffee shop, watching everyone that was here. Most people spoke to each other and fooled around with friends, saying some nonsensical things to each other and in general being very silly. Meanwhile, some other folks sat alone, enjoying their cup of coffee, some reading the newspaper while others simply sat in silence. Jaydon blinked and sighed, looking down at his fingernails. Staring at his painted nails and breathed out a quiet laugh. 

"Hey, Jaydon?" Blake said, pulling him out of his silence. Glancing over, he hummed in response. "Isn't that Hector?" Blake asked, pointing over to somewhere. Furrowing his eyebrows, Jaydon followed his finger and looked over to where he pointed and stopped. There at the employees only door, was Hector hauling in some bags of Java Beans, looking to be having a difficult time with the heavy bags. Placing them down onto the nearby cart, Hector wiped his brow and looked over to another employee, mouthing something to them.

Staring for a moment, Jaydon blinked and nodded in reply. "Yeah, that's him." He turned back towards where Hector was and attempted to be discreet as he watched him from across the room. Obviously, Hector didn't really notice him at all. Since he was doing his job, he couldn't just step out and talk to Jaydon and he respected that. Then again... Jaydon really wanted to say hi to him or something, but he was too shy to even get his attention.

Blake stared at Jaydon and furrowed his eyebrows, noticing the odd behaviour Jaydon was showing. He glanced over to Hector and back to Jaydon and made a face, leaning towards Peggy and whispering something to him. Peggy raised his eyebrows and nodded, seeming to agree with something Blake had said to him. Jaydon noticed this and stared right at them, giving the two a look. Soon, the barista came by and gave them their orders, handing each one their cups of coffee. The three muttered their thanks and was about to go back to what they were doing before the Barista stopped and pointed at Jaydon with a confused look.

"Excuse me. But, are you... Jaydon?" They asked, tilting their head as they did. Jaydon stopped and hesitated, glancing over to Blake and Peggy, who both just shrugged. Soon, he simply nodded in reply. Quickly, the Barista smiled and again pointed at him. "Oohhh! So, you're the guy one of our employees always talk about!" They said a little too loud for Jaydon. Though, he was confused. He didn't think anyone would talk about him, here at the coffee shop, but he had an idea of who it could be. Quickly, the barista pointed to Hector's direction and began rambling on about how Hector always talked about Jaydon, saying such nice things about him and how he considered him to be a friend of his.

As Jaydon listened, he began to feel his face heat up as he became increasingly much more flustered as the Barista continued on and on. Blake and Peggy also listened in, making the occasional comment and chuckle. Soon, Blake lightly elbowed Jaydon and pointed, telling Jaydon that Hector was looking. Jaydon glanced over and saw Blake was correct. Hector occasionally glanced over, as he picked up the bags of beans and placing them onto the cart. Once the two made eye contact, Hector smiled at him and waved. Jaydon simply blinked and hesitated. He waved back at him, attempting to keep his cool... Well, whatever 'cool' he had.

"So." The barista started, prompting the three to look up at them. "...Are you two, like... Dating or something?" They suddenly asked in a joking manner, pointing at him and smirking as they did.

Immediately, Jaydon came to a halt and quickly shook his head. "NO!" He loudly said in defence but stuttered on his words as he tried to find another way to turn the conversation around. The Barista chuckled at his reaction and nodded.

"Alright, sorry for disturbing you three." They nodded once and said their goodbye, taking their pay and finally walking away with a grin on their face. Blake and Peggy froze at the question for a bit, but as soon as the Barista walked away, they glanced over to Jaydon and saw his face buried into his hands. Obviously, this was funny for the two and poked at him for fun. Jaydon simply swatted their hands away and muttered something indistinguishable to them. Not long after, the two simply continued talking like normal. Glancing up and around, Jaydon noticed Hector was gone. However, as relieved as he was, he was still pretty disappointed to see him gone. He wished he wasn't so awkward and just got the courage to speak to Hector.


	10. I can't

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Don't be rude

Jaydon went home, with Blake following along. As they made their way over, Blake had bought a game and once they arrived, the two set up Jaydon's system he had in the living room. Playing the game, they realized this was a very obscure game they had never really saw or heard of before. It was a basic puzzle and collecting game, where the player played as a statue. A little cloud floated after them, basically, it was a partner for them throughout the game. As weird as the game was so far, they didn't really mind how it looked and played. It reminded the two about some old, old games. The game having the aesthetic and looks of the very old games.

Blake continued going through the level, talking about the game as he did. "I got to collect pills and food." He idly said. "About like... 20 or so." He continued, as he went through this strange level. Jaydon just watched and listened as Blake continued through the game, collecting the strange things they had to collect in order to continue. He smiled and made the character go down a slope.

"Okay-- Get the bucket of water..." He said in a funny way, as he collected said item. He breathed out a laugh and continued. "You know, For a couple of bucks... This game isn’t bad at all. It's just your standard puzzler, man. With the-- uh... Juicy Aesthetic." Jaydon just glanced over to him and hummed in response as Blake continued to play, going onto the next level. Jaydon blinked, honestly already a little bored with the game. He breathed out and watched. As soon as the next level loaded, the two were met with a strange level. It had an effect, making everything on the screen wave, as Blake immediately went straight down the level, still collecting the items. Blake breathed out a nervous laugh as the tv let out a low rumble. "Oh, this is weird." Again, he chuckled nervously. "This is weird." He repeated.

Jaydon just sighed and leaned back. "Where did you even get this game from?" He asked. Blake just shrugged and explained someone was selling it just down the street. Jaydon crossed his arms and shook his head. "Alright, maybe don't do that again." He instructed. Blake nodded and leaned forward, taking the cartridge out of the console.

"Welp, I'm going to play a different game," Blake said, looking into a bag he brought over. Digging into it, he reached in and brought out another game Jaydon didn't recognize. He tilted his head at it and watched Blake insert it into the console, the game quickly started up onto its title screen. It was a bright and colourful looking game with a pink little ball with feet and short arms on the screen. The music was very upbeat and admittingly very cute. Soon, Blake went right in and began playing. "I'm just playing this to get that other game off my mind." He idly said. "That game was really weird."

Jaydon nodded and watched him play. About 15 minutes later, he heard his phone go off. He paused and stared at the tv screen for a moment, before getting up to see who had messaged him. Walking over to the kitchen table, he picked up his phone and flipped it open. The message was from Hector and Immediately, he smiled. A simple greeting was exchanged and soon, Jaydon became absorbed in conversation with Hector, talking about various things which made him laugh and all the works. If it were not for Blake occasionally making a comment about the game, Jaydon probably would have completely forgotten about the game and Blake altogether.

The conversation went on, Hector briefly asked about why Jaydon was at the Coffee Shop. Of course, Jaydon replied, saying he was with friends and all that. Hector simply acknowledged his answer and changed the subject rather quickly to something completely different. Jaydon didn't mind the sudden change and happily went along with him as they continued to text back and forth about random subjects.

As Jaydon waited for Hector to respond, he searched around his phone, looking into the Internet Explorer. As he surfed the web, Jaydon stumbled onto a forum and found many emoticons which he thought looked funny. Many of the users on this website used these emotes in normal conversation and it made him curious. Quickly, he copied all the emotes he saw and began pasted them into his notes, wanting to use them in conversation with friends, since he thought they were funny. Although, he wasn't sure if he should use these with Hector, because he wasn't sure if Hector would like them.

Suddenly, his phone notified him a message and of course, it was Hector.

_"Sorry, I had to check something really quick." - 5:34 PM._

_"Its okay!! :) :) :) Hey check this out i found it while i was onn a fourm" - 5:34 PM_

_"∠( ᐛ 」∠)＿ " - 5:35 PM._

_"What the hell is that" - 5:36 PM._

As Jaydon continued chatting with Hector, chuckling to himself and sharing the emoticons he found and simply talking to him, Blake paused his game, the house suddenly going a little too quiet. Jaydon paused and glanced up towards him, a little confused from the sudden silence. Blake sat there for a moment, looking down at his controller. Jaydon blinked at him, unsure what to say as the other man sat in silence, as the soft music of the paused screen continued to play. "What?" Jaydon asked a little too quietly. Silence rang throughout the two and Jaydon thought that maybe Blake hadn't heard him. About to repeat himself, Blake breathed out a chuckle, scratching the back of his neck. Jaydon saw him open his mouth to say something, but paused, as if he were hesitating to speak. 

He hadn't really seen Blake act like this in the past, making him a bit concerned and to ask him if there was something wrong. However, before he had a chance to ask, Blake sighed and took out the game. "Well, I should probably go home now." He said, packing the games he brought with him back into his blue messenger bag. Jaydon glanced down to his phone and saw it was only 6. Usually, Blake would stay well past midnight, if not around 10 or 11. Picking up his bag, he turned off the console and wrapped the controller in its wire, tucking the system back into its place on the shelf where it was previously. "I have... Something to do at home I just remembered about." Blake finished. "So, I guess I'll see you later, dude." 

Jaydon watched him walk towards the door, still unsure what to say. He nervously breathed out a chuckle. "Oh okay." He simply said, closing his phone. "See ya." Blake just nodded in response and left, the door closing with a soft click. Jaydon stared at the door, unsure what to think of what just happened. Did he upset him somehow? Squinting at the thought, he simply shrugged and proceeded to tell Hector what just happened, expressing his confusion towards him.

Hector simply made a sly remark, joking about how Blake was probably just making up an excuse to leave. However, Jaydon thought that he may have been right, but didn't think too much about it and the two continued conversations as if nothing happened... However, secretly, he was relieved that Blake was gone. He wanted to be alone in the first place anyway, after what had happened at the stage.


	11. I'm not good with Chapter names if you haven't noticed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DON'T BE RUDE!!!

Jaydon sat on the couch, folding his laundry. They were warm, fresh out of the dryer and he loved the way they smelled and how warm they were. He was almost tempted to simply cover himself with the pile and lay there to bask in the warmth of the laundry pile. Though, he thought against it. The laundry was clean and he didn't want to get them all dirty again and possibly having to iron them flat. Another reason why he folded his laundry while they were still warm, was so he could avoid the clothes becoming wrinkled. He found that folding them right after was the best solution to avoid that problem.

Idly, he wondered about the others. Wondering if Peggy and Phoebe were doing fine and if Blake really had to do something the other day. He also wondered if Hassan and Royce ever spoke to each other outside of being with the group. Jaydon never really saw them together before, so he was just curious. Soon, a knock was heard at the door, pulling him out of his thoughts. Looking over to the door, he paused and looked down at the laundry and sat there for a moment, debating if he should even answer the door. Sighing, he sat up and placed down a shirt he had and walked over to the door.

Unlocking and opening the door, there stood Royce with Phoebe standing just in front of them. The three stood in silence, Jaydon unsure what to say. However, before he could say anything Royce pushed Phoebe towards him. "Here." They said, holding her by the shoulders. "Keep her, I don't want to." They bluntly finished, before turning around and leaving the two.

Jaydon looked down at the smaller woman and made a face, not really sure what was going on and why Royce suddenly decided to drop her onto him. Hesitating, he opened the door a bit more, inviting her inside. Phoebe looked up at him, looking a little nervous and stepped in, picking at her fingernails as she did. "Just... Take a seat anywhere, if you'd like." Jaydon said gesturing to the kitchen table and couch. Quickly, he walked over to the couch and picked up whatever clothes were left, taking them to his room and just throwing them onto his bed. Walking back, he picked up the folded laundry, clearing the couch and again, gesturing towards it. Phoebe just smiled awkwardly at him before taking a seat.

Quickly, he walked away back to his room, putting his folded laundry where they belonged and hanging some sweaters he had in his closet. Idly, he wondered why Royce didn't just take Phoebe home. That would have been an easier option to go with if they didn't want to keep her. Walking back out into the living room, he looked over to Phoebe, who was just glancing around the place. Honestly, Jaydon was a little annoyed that she was dropped onto him and suddenly felt like he had to babysit her for some reason. Which was weird to think of it in that way, since she was technically his friend. "So... Why couldn't you go home?" He asked her. Phoebe looked up at him and nervously chuckled, shrugging as she did.

"I dunno." She replied, not giving Jaydon any more information. She looked away from him and continued to fidget with her nails. Jaydon sighed in annoyance and pointed to her left.

"You can watch tv if you want." He pointed out. "I'm going to continue cleaning up." Phoebe looked in the direction he pointed at and quickly picked up the remote, turning on the tv. The tv tuned to the last channel Jaydon was watching, which was some sort of cooking channel. However, it was on commercial right now, so she changed the channel. Jaydon just blinked and glanced back down to Phoebe, sighing through his nose. "So, why couldn't you just go to Peggy's home?" He asked. She paused but simply shrugged in reply, continuing to go through the channels. 

A frown tugged at Jaydon’s lips, after a short pause as he realized Phoebe probably won't tell him... Then again, she may suddenly change her mind, he wouldn't know and frankly, He doesn't really care. Sighing, he turned towards the kitchen and raised an eyebrow. Maybe she would like something to drink... That's what you offer when you have guests over, right? Well, he did that to Blake before and the others in the past. He even did that with Hector. He idly wondered if he were doing the right thing. He shrugged. Whatever, he thought. She will ask if she wants something to drink or whatever.

Finally, he walked away to the room, thinking that maybe he should hang up his laundry in the closet or just doing what he usually does. Which was weird, now that he thought about it. He wondered what made him suddenly think about doing that instead. Then again, he should just simply put them away as he usually does, folding them and placing them into the dressers... Hm. He should iron out that sweater he has in the closet. It's just hanging there all wrinkled and messy looking. Yeah, it's clean for the most part, but it was badly wrinkled from being wrapped up and thrown to the side for a few days. Yeah, maybe he should do that. Clean it all over again and most likely it will lose the wrinkles--

"Jaydon," Phoebe called out. Jaydon stopped and turned towards her, humming in response. She opened her mouth and hesitated, turning to face him. "Do you... Like me as a friend? Or as a person in general?" She asked. Jaydon raised an eyebrow at her question and without thinking he spoke his mind.

"No." He bluntly admitted. "You're a mean bitch." He continued as he shrugged and shook his head. "No." He repeated. Phoebe blinked at him and flickered her eyes around the room as if she were not sure where to look. She pursed her lips and turned back towards the television.

"Oh." She finished. Jaydon made a face and simply walked away, walking off to finish his laundry and put them away, finally. As he turned, Phoebe stopped him again, calling his name again. Jaydon sighed and turned around. "You don't think Peggy is mad at me, right?" She suddenly asked. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows, wondering what the hell happened the other day at the coffee shop. However, he didn't really care, it wasn't his problem and he didn't think this is the sort of stuff he should be dropped onto. He was never good with this sort of stuff and he simply didn't really want to be involved with stupid drama shit that happens between friends and he knew it was inevitable that he would soon be a part of.

He crossed his arms and sighed, thinking he should just tell her what he heard the other day while he was with Peggy and Blake, just to get this over with. "No." He again bluntly replied. "Peggy said he was worried that you were mad at him." He said, empathizing his words in an obviously annoyed manner. "So, maybe go talk to him and..." He shrugged. "I dunno, talk to him." He finished. Phoebe looked up at him, seeming like she wasn't expecting a direct answer from Jaydon and blinked. She glanced away in thought and sunk a little further into the couch. Jaydon sighed through his nose and turned around on his heels and walked off to his room, where he could finally finish up his laundry.

As he was putting away whatever laundry he folded, he heard the front door open and then close, making him stop what he was doing. Listening carefully, he realized the tv was off and immediately connected that Phoebe had probably left. Quickly, he walked back towards his door and awkwardly leaned out, looking out into the hall. His house was quiet once again and Phoebe was nowhere to be seen. Raising an eyebrow, Jaydon shrugged and assumed she must have left, finally and walked back to his housework.


	12. UH OH

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> U H O H

"The name's Hammer - Jacques Hammer." The actor announced to Jaydon, looking confident in their lines. They were fully dressed in their Hammer character outfit, pointing their magnifying glass at Jaydon. "I've got a few questions for you." They continued, crossing their one arm as they did, still pointing. Jaydon glanced over to them, flickering his eyes down to the magnifying glass and back up to the actor.

"Bitch."  
The actor paused, realizing what Jaydon said and frowned at him, dropping their arms to their side as they stared at him, obviously displeased. "Alright, Look--" 

Willow glanced down to the script and raised an eyebrow and pointed at Jaydon, before simply giving a smile and shaking their head. Obviously, they simply just didn't know what to say to him. Jaydon glanced over to them and paused, before shrugging. "Sorry, I panicked." He replied with a deadpan look. Skye rolled their eyes from the desk they had to stand at as Dom as Willow chuckled before simply telling the actors to restart this scene and continue on.

This was all over and finally, Jaydon was able to go home. Just as he was putting away his costume and stuff, he spotted Blake in the back. He was just testing the rain effect on the window, making sure it worked and that the hose didn't spray water everywhere. Yes, they used actual water to get the full effect. They even had to put some tarp over the sides of the window to avoid getting the set wet as well. The water drained into a vat below and honestly, Jaydon wasn't sure where the water went after that. But he assumed it went into the draining system and goes through the entire process of sewer stuff.

Blake shook his hands from getting his hands wet and wiped them onto his pants. He looked over to someone else who was helping with the backstage stuff and mouth something Jaydon couldn't hear and the person; Who was named JJ, simply waved him off and mouthed something back to Blake, pointing at the water system before turning it off. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and finally finished putting away his stuff picking up his sweater and vinyl messenger bag. He turned around and began making his way out of the stage before glancing around and seeing some of the techs getting things working for next time. Again, he spotted Blake, who also made eye contact with him and quickly, Blake broke it. He looked elsewhere and seemed to try and find something to do with his hands.

Again, Jaydon raised an eyebrow at this and walked out of the stage and into the snow. He stopped and looked up at the sky and saw how dark it already was getting as snow fell down gently from the sky. He stood there, staring at the dark clouds, the only brightest light source being the lamps from the Stage itself. He blinked and soon, the feeling of guilt settled into his stomach. He couldn't help but think about the way Blake acted the other day and wondered if he accidentally ignored Blake without really realizing it... Well, he couldn't be sure. Either he would have to ask Blake or Blake would have to confront him about it. He was never really good at catching signals or vague gestures.

He shrugged it off for now and decided to go home, sighing as he did. He followed his breath with his eyes as it raised in visible puffs, watching it dissipate in the air. He idly wondered what he should make to eat when he got home, or if he should just get pizza. He still had the coins he gotten from Hassan the other day, so maybe he should use that now. He glanced behind him and sighed, seeing he was already too far from the Pizza Parlor and sighed, deciding to just keep walking. He'll just make something when he gets home, he thought.

As he walked, he stared at the ground, watching the snow he kicked up as he walked. Even spotting a small little pile of snow that would stay on his boots until he took a relatively hard stomp of the ground and when he did, the snow around would fly away, leaving a small clearing of the previous snowfall as the recent sort of blew away from his stomp. He chuckled at a thought. It was sort of like he created a small shockwave when he does that. 

Soon, he heard someone running through the snow, as their quick breaths gotten much louder. Obviously, whoever this was, they were running straight for him. Quickly, he looked up and was suddenly grabbed by the person and the two fell into some bushes Jaydon was nearby. _"Woah, what the--"_ He cried out before Immediately, he was shushed by the person, them covering his mouth and effectively silencing him. 

_"Shut up-- Please, shut up--"_ They whispered to him, holding him close. The two sat in the bushes in a long silence, Jaydon wondering what the hell was going on. He glanced over to see who it was and saw it was Phoebe was the one who grabbed him. He noticed how panicked she looked as she seemed to listen and watch the surroundings. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked around as well. Not long after, the sound of someone walking was soon heard. Through the falling snow, the two saw a figure appear from the dark, glancing around and wearing some sort of hoody. So, it was hard to see who this was. The two watched intently as the figure walked towards their direction and in response, Phoebe began to shake as she held Jaydon's face.  
The figure stopped nearby the bush and looked around from where they stood, looking a bit confused. They looked down to the ground and stared at it for a long moment before a long and visible puff of air escaped from their mouth, obviously sighing. They quietly muttered something before going off into the direction where Jaydon came from.

Phoebe and Jaydon sat in the bush for a long moment, until they could not hear the figures footsteps anymore. Soon, she finally let go of Jaydon and let out a shaky breath before breaking down as her adrenaline finally wore off. She folded her arms close to herself as she began sobbing uncontrollably as she attempted to form words, only for them to come out as sobs. Jaydon stared at her and looked into the direction of where the figure went off to and could only assume that person was the reason for her behaviour and patted her back. He helped her stand up and began guiding her to his house since he didn't exactly know where Phoebe or Peggy lived. "Come on, let’s go to my house." He said, Phoebe just nodding in agreement as she wiped her face.  
For now, it seemed the two of them were going to ignore what happened the other day when Jaydon straight up told her she was a mean bitch. No one deserved to feel what just happened to her. For the rest of the way, Jaydon made sure he kept an eye on their surroundings to make sure they were not being followed by whoever that was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wrow


	13. heuhg

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> h

"I don't know, she just grabbed me and threw us into a bush," Jaydon explained over the phone. Peggy let out a sigh and paused for a long moment.

"Alright, I'm coming over with Hassan." He said, briefly explaining that Hassan was already with him and before quickly hung up. Jaydon paused and looked down at the caller display and confirmed he hung up and tossed his phone onto the table and glanced over to Phoebe who was sitting on the couch again. He honestly didn't know what to do. Obviously, this wasn't something that normally happens on the island and obviously, there was something going on that Jaydon didn't know about. The only way he could find out is asking questions about it.

Jaydon awkwardly stepped over to Phoebe, who was staring at the blank television screen with her knees close to her chest. He paused and tried to find something to say. "... Would you like some water or something?" He asked. Phoebe took a moment to reply before she nodded as she sunk a little further into the couch. Jaydon hummed and turned on his heels and walked towards the kitchen, picking up a cup from the sink and cleaning it, before filling it up with water. He turned back around and went back to Phoebe, handing the cup to her. There a long pause between the two before Jaydon spoke up again. "Who was that?" He asked.

Phoebe shook her head "I don't know." She admitted. "I was going home and I noticed that person had been following for a bit and I didn't want them to know where I lived, So I started taking turns and I got myself lost as this person was following me and I didn't know what to do! So, I started running because I didn't know what to do!" She rambled. "I didn't know where I was going, it was too dark and just--" She trailed off and sat up, placing the cup down onto the floor as she began to wipe her face with her sleeves. Jaydon sort of stood there. Again, unsure what to do. "I'm just... I don't think I would have known what to do If I hadn't seen you walking there."

Jaydon itched the back of his neck and hummed in reply, unsure how to react or what to say. Soon, both of them went quiet again and quietly, Jaydon asked if she wanted to watch tv or play some sort of game since he had a system here. However, she quietly denied and so, both of them sort of sat in silence as Jaydon sat at the table to fiddle around with his phone. He idly thought about texting Hector about this but decided against it. This wasn't really something to be shared openly about.

Soon, a knock was heard at the door and quickly, Jaydon got up to check who it was. Unlocking the door and opening it a bit, he peaked out and saw Peggy and Hassan standing there and Jaydon relaxed at the sight of them and opened the door and let them in. Immediately, Peggy went to Phoebe and bombarded her with questions, asking if she was alright and the whole works, hugging her as well. Jaydon closed the door and went back to the table with Hassan following just behind, both of them taking a seat and watching Peggy and Phoebe. Hassan adjusted his round glasses and tilted his head. "So, did she tell you what happened?" He asked.

Jaydon looked over to him and paused before shrugging. "Yeah, I guess so?" He replied. "She kind of went on a tangent on what happened." He breathed out a laugh and shrugged again, his smile quickly fading away. "She was being followed by someone and she panicked." He finished.

Hassan stared for a moment and blinked, glancing down to the table. Soon, he furrowed his eyebrows, opening his mouth slightly as he seemed to try to find his words. He looked back up at Jaydon and pointed at him. “You don’t think that person is...” He paused in mid-sentence and tapped his chin. “You know... The same one who has been suspected to be involved with that guy, Jean?” He asked.

"Who's that?" Jaydon asked. Hassan opened his mouth to reply but paused. 

He shook his head, admitting he wasn't sure who the person was. "I don't know. They say Jean's death was suspected to be related to foul play" Hassan continued, shrugging as he finished. "Or something related." Jaydon paused, unsure how Hassan obtained this information and raised an eyebrow at him.

"How do you know that?" He asked. Hassan simply said that he read it in the newspaper, explaining the PSA was attempting to find more evidence to the case. Apparently, something like this happening wasn't the first time as well. The first time was an islander being found in the cave systems and was assumed to have been an accidental death since there was no evidence for an actual murder at the time. However, in recent times since there have been some suspicious 'accidental deaths', they're suspecting someone is behind them. Jaydon nodded in reply, having absolutely no idea about the last deaths. He heard of some islanders dying but he was simply never sure if they were true. He also never took the time to read the newspaper.

Hassan shook his head, realizing that he kind of info dumped on Jaydon just now and pointed at him. "You have to start reading the newspaper." He finished, adjusting his glasses. Soon, Peggy said something which caught their attention, prompting them to turn around. Peggy looked so mad and had his arms crossed. Jaydon and Hassan glanced over to each other, assuming that Phoebe finally finished explaining what happened.

"Oh!!" Peggy said in an annoyed and angry tone. "We're going to talk to those PSA agents tomorrow and get them to not be so lazy at their job!!" He said, raising his voice. "It's their job to protect the island and they're not doing it!!" It was obvious he was trying to keep himself from screaming or something. Evident from his face becoming red as he tried keeping in his temper. "Those agents are useless at their job, just look at what happened to all those other islanders in the past!" He ranted. Jaydon could only assume Peggy was talking about what Hassan explained not long ago.

"Okay. Calm down, Peggy." Hassan said, putting his hand up. "They're doing all they can and you know this." He finished. Peggy crossed his arms and breathed through his nose, the red tint in his face now fading. He nodded and muttered an apology. However, something suddenly seemed to come to mind.

"Well, it's true!" Peggy pressed on. "If they were doing their job better, then maybe all those innocent folks wouldn't have been in the crossfire of whatever is happening here on this island." Hassan paused at his statement and soon, shook his head. Jaydon assumed he wasn't going to argue with Peggy since it was a late hour right now. He glanced up at the clock and saw it was 12 PM, nearing to 1 and sighed. Peggy saw Jaydon looking up and followed his gaze, pausing at the time and suddenly looked worried. "Man, it's already almost past 12?" He asked.

Hassan paused and looked up as well and quickly glanced away, scratching the side of his head. There was a long silence between them all as they all seemed a little bit lost in their thoughts as if they didn't really know what to do. "I'm going to be honest," Hassan started. "But, I'm scared to go home right now." He admitted, looking over to Jaydon. Peggy and Phoebe looked over to Jaydon as well and there was a short silence between them. Jaydon sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. He knew what they were silently asking for and if he were to say no, he would just feel bad for them because he knew that Hassan lived in the opposite direction of where Phoebe and Peggy lived and for all he knew, that person could still be out there, waiting for Phoebe to return or something.

He pursed his lips and soon nodded. "You can stay the night if you'd like." Jaydon offered. Quickly, the group glanced over to each other with a smile, looking relieved. "I have one guest room with one bed, so maybe work something out or whatever." He continued.


	14. Danger Danger aaaaaaaa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrow gang, we got a mystery on our hands

It was about 3 in the morning and by now everyone was sleeping. Phoebe and Peggy ended up sleeping in the guest room together as Hassan simply slept on the couch. He insisted he would be fine where he is. However, Jaydon was awake and he couldn't stop thinking about that person he and Phoebe saw and what they could have possibly wanted. Was this person actually... Possibly the same person the PSA could be searching for? Well, they have no idea who they're looking for from the sounds of it. What could have happened if Jaydon had actually turned around back to the Pizza Parlor? Would Phoebe have gotten away from that person who was following her?

He made a face and turned around on the bed, not really wanting to think about it. Despite him not being very close to her, it was still pretty scary to think about what could have happened if he hadn't been there at that time. What would have happened if that person found them hiding in the bushes? Yeah, Jaydon is a pretty strong guy but who knows how strong that person could have been. For all he knew, he would have lost to this stranger and who knows what could have happened to them.

"Jaydon!" A whispered voice called out, making Jaydon jolt in surprise and turn towards the voice. There at his bedroom door was Hassan, only his face being the only thing Jaydon could see in the darkness. "Jaydon, there's someone at the door." He whispered. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and tossed the blankets off of himself and jumped out of bed. He walked passed Hassan, who stayed by his bedroom door as he watched him walk to the front door. Jaydon paused, listening if he could hear anything on the other side and made a face. Obviously, he didn't hear anything.

He stepped over to the window and peeked out and there he saw someone standing there patiently. However, he couldn't exactly see who it was. Hesitantly, he unlocked the door and opened it just a bit, turning on the front porch light. There stood Blake, who flinched at the light. Jaydon frowned, obviously confused and opened the door all the way. "Jesus, Blake!" Hassan called out from the couch. "You scared the hell out of me!"   
Blake breathed out a laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "Ah. Did I... Wake you guys up?" Blake asked, obviously a little nervous. Hassan shrugged and replied, saying he didn't really wake him up. He was already awake and was just laying there. Jaydon paused and simply said the same thing.

"What are you doing here?" Jaydon asked. "It's like... 3 in the morning." He pointed out. Again, Blake breathed out a laugh seeming to realize that fact and tried finding something to do with his hands. He shrugged and shook his head.

"I--... I- I don't know." He said. "I was... Just." Blake stopped and cleared his throat. "I guess, I was just around." He finished. Jaydon stopped to take a look at him and saw he was wearing a pretty big hoody. Possibly because of how cold it was right now. Realizing how cold it was and that he and Hassan were basically in their boxers, a shiver ran up his spine and quickly, in an annoyed manner, told Blake to get inside. Once inside, obviously a little annoyed but unnerved, Jaydon asked what on earth possessed Blake to come over at this time and why he would think he would even be awake. Blake shrugged in response, rubbing his arm as he did.

Jaydon and Hassan stood there, waiting for an answer from their fellow friend as he stuttered on his words. Hassan squinted at him and opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted. "What are you guys doing...?" Blake asked, pointing at two. Jaydon and Hassan glanced over to each other and realized how weird and out of context it must have looked with the two standing together in their boxers... Alone. The two let out nervous laughter and they realized this and briefly explained what happened.  
"So... Yeah. They were too scared to go home. So, now they're here." Jaydon finished. Blake blinked and nodded. He had no idea that Peggy and Phoebe were here too, he admitted. Since they were sleeping, he wouldn't have known anyways.

"Now, what are you doing here?" Hassan asked, a little more insistent than before. Blake paused again and stuttered on his words as he tried to speak. Jaydon squinted at him, unsure what to think. Soon, Blake began to shake, his voice quavering as he tried to speak. Hassan tilted his head at him, worry clear in his face. "Hey, are you doing okay?" he asked. 

Jaydon stared for a moment, realizing something really was not right with Blake at the moment and he kind of dreaded for what was probably coming. Blake nodded, explaining he was just feeling a little under the weather, that was all. He also explained, again, that he was just around and wanted to see his good friend, Jaydon. He stepped back towards the door and pointed at the two, smiling. "So, I guess... Yeah. I'm just... Gonna go now." He paused. "Home... That is..." He breathed out a laugh and opened the door a bit, the wind blowing through, making Jaydon and Hassan wince at the cold.

Quickly, without another word, Blake left, the door closing with a click. Hassan and Jaydon stared at the door for a moment and glanced over to each other. Obviously, they both had the same thought in mind. They both wondered what was that all about... However, they didn't think about it to long, Hassan saying that he'll find Blake in the morning. The two were tired and simply couldn't run out into the cold to go and look for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> qwhoops short again lmao


	15. oh boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hrrrmmm

Jaydon sat on the couch, watching tv and texting Hector. It had been two days since all of that happened. When Peggy and Phoebe left, Jaydon found out that they move a lot when they're sleeping and was left with the guest bed sheets practically on the floor. Which was a little unfortunate. Peggy apologized and tried helping with cleaning up, but he didn't know Jaydon’s routine to cleaning up. So, Jaydon sort of told him that it was okay and just told him not to worry about it. When they left, Jaydon spent the next few hours cleaning up the house.

Once the three had left, they went and told what happened the night before to the PSA. The agents simply took in a statement, since they were not sure who it was and they didn't exactly harm Phoebe. Of course, Peggy was upset and Jaydon was told that Peggy went on and began yelling at them, telling them about... Their job or something. Jaydon couldn't exactly remember what happened, but Peggy was shut down.

He wasn't really paying attention to his phone right now and was actually intently watching the tv. It was his favourite cooking show from the Croteau twins, again. They were preparing something related to noodles and soybeans. He would only take a look at his texts every few minutes. This time, he actually forgot to check, even after the notification had sounded. He was just really interested in the noodles.

About an hour passed and a knock was heard at the door. Jaydon turned his head towards the door, unsure who it could have been. However, he hoped it wasn't someone who was looking to visit for a while, he wasn't in the mood to have someone in his house. Sighing, he sat up and walked over, unlocking the door and opening it. There, waiting, was Hector. He looked up at Jaydon and grinned, obviously happy to see him.

"Jaydon!" Hector said with his gleeful voice. Jaydon smiled back at him. "Are you doing anything right now?" he asked. Jaydon paused and shook his head. He said he was just watching tv and was thinking of going out to get some pizza. Hector smiled. "Oh, great! So, you're not doing anything. May I come in?"

Jaydon paused, hesitating before nodding. "... Yeah, sure." Jaydon said, opening the door. Hector walked in and glanced around the place and soon took a seat at the kitchen table. Nervously, Jaydon shut the door and shuffled over and sat across from Hector.

"So, how are you doing?" Hector asked. "I haven't seen you in some time--" he breathed out a laugh. "Well, besides online," he joked. Jaydon chuckled and fiddled around with his handkerchief.  
"I've been doing okay." He replied with a shrug. "How are you?"

Hector shrugged. "I've also been okay," Hector explained how his day was and apparently, he just got back from the Lighthouse. There was a group of Islanders there, playing their instruments and in general sounded like they were having fun. Jaydon remembered how Rockhopper was on the Island earlier last week or something and had brought a lot of plants. Jaydon didn't get a chance to go and see them. Hector suddenly paused, as if something had come to mind. "... So, I heard what happened to your friend the other day." He brought up. 

Jaydon raised his eyebrows and blinked, unsure what to think. He breathed out a laugh "Oh, really? How'd you hear about that?" He asked.

"Word gets around quick on the island, you know." Hector pointed out. Jaydon blinked and nodded. That was true, but he still didn't know who told Hector about it. Well, when he thought about it, Hector probably literally heard about it. Most Islanders talk fairly loudly, which was why Jaydon always stayed inside a lot. "You were there too, right?" Hector asked.

"... I guess so." Jaydon replied with a shrug. Hector raised an eyebrow.

"You guess?" He asked with a smile. Jaydon nodded, shifting in his seat. Hector paused for a short moment before humming and simply shrugging it off. "So, do you know who that person was?" he asked, tilting his head slightly. Jaydon shook his head and admitted he had no idea. It was too dark for the two of them to really see who it was they saw. All he knew was that the figure wore a hoodie. Again, Hector hummed in response and sighed through his nose.

There was a short pause between the two before Jaydon suddenly remembered about Blake coming over the other night. He raised his eyebrows and wondered about him for a moment. "You know..." Jaydon started. "My friend, Blake, happened to come over that same night and... I have no idea why. It was really late." He admitted. "My other friend, Hassan, was supposed to go and look for him the next day, but he never really updated me with anything." He shrugged and said that Hassan had probably forgotten. Hector raised his eyebrows, something seeming to come up in mind.

He furrowed his eyebrows and pointed at Jaydon, pausing for a short moment. "You don't... Think..." Hector paused again, glancing away in thought. Jaydon blinked at him, not really catching what he was trying to say. Hector pursed his lips and tapped his chin. "Did you see what that person was wearing that night?" He asked. Jaydon shook his head, repeating that it was too dark to really see anything... However, he did know he wore a hoodie and that was it. Hector's mouth twitched. "You don't think that figure was... Your friend, Blake... Right?" He asked. Jaydon raised his eyebrows, a bit surprised at Hector. "Look, listen." Hector started. "Why would Blakes come over at the late hours of the night?" he asked. "For all we know, Blake could have been that person!" he finished. 

Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows in thought, a little confused but began to wonder the same thing. Why was Blake out that night? He just came over and immediately left, as if he were hiding something... Soon, Jaydon shook his head, not believing what Hector was putting out. "No, I don't think he would do that," Jaydon said, obviously doubting Hector. "I saw him when I was walking out of the Stage that night-- Inside." Jaydon pointed out. "Look, I'll call Hassan and... Ask if he saw Blake at all." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, went onto the contacts list, and dialled up Hassan’s number. As it rang, Hector sort of watched, waiting for an answer. Soon, Hassan picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hassan, it's me Jaydon... I have a question."

Hassan paused for a short moment, the sound of a bag crinkling in the background from his end coming through. "Okay, shoot." He said.

"Did you ever find Blake?" Jaydon asked. Again, Hassan paused. "The other night you said you would go and look for him." He reminded.

"Ooh!" Hassan paused. "... No. I didn't find him." He admitted, disappointment in his voice. Immediately, Jaydon raised an eyebrow at this and thought it was a little weird. But, he refused to believe what Hector put out not long ago. Blake just wasn't like that, he was a nice guy and wouldn't actively go out and hurt a close friend of his. "I went out to look for him, asking around if anyone had seen him, but... No luck." Hassan explained. "Maybe he went over to the mines... I heard a while back that was where he went sometimes." He speculated. "But yeah. I didn't check because... Well... The mines creep me out."

Jaydon nodded. "Alright, thanks." Hassan muttered a reply and soon the two hung up. He sat there for a moment in silence, attempting to find some sort of reason why Blake came over that night and tried thinking of any sort of little details about Blake at the time. However, he realized that he was probably pretty tired at the time and only remembered how fidgety Blake was. He sighed and glanced back over to Hector.

"So?" Hector started. "What did your friend say?" Jaydon shook his head and explained what Hassan said. Hector raised an eyebrow and shifted in his eat, a smile creeping onto his face. "Wow, really?" He asked. "Man, I wonder what Blake was doing then..." Hector tilted his head as he pondered his question, a smile on his face as he did. Jaydon raised an eyebrow but gave a smile. He enjoyed seeing Hector smile.

"Anyway!" Hector started. "You have games, right? Want to play some games together? I brought one over that we can play together!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a game cartridge and immediately, Jaydon recognized it to be one of the popular games that had come out recently and smiled.

"Okay." He said. "I'll set up the system."


	16. vidya gaems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ooof

Turns out Hector was pretty good at the game and ended up defeated Jaydon on many tries. However, Jaydon didn't really mind and... Honestly, for an excuse, he couldn't help but think about what exactly Blake was doing that night, but he tried to ignore it. Which really distracted him from focusing from the game. Hector laughed and looked over to Jaydon with a grin. "Come on, Jaydon! I know you can do better than that!" he said with great enthusiasm. Jaydon breathed out a laugh and glanced down to the controller before looking back up at the screen.

Right now, he had to do a bunch of puzzles and get rid of a bunch of turret robots with a cube... And Jaydon wasn't very good at puzzles. Again, he failed the puzzle, stumped at where he should go next. Hector sighed and took the controller. "Here, look I'll show you." He said, quickly navigating through the level and finishing the puzzle with ease. Jaydon frowned at himself, realizing how easy the puzzle really was. Man, he thought, he must be a big idiot to not figure that out.

Hector looked over to him. "Hey, weren't you going to the Pizza Parlor later?" he asked. Jaydon raised his eyebrows as he realized that. Once this was pointed out, a sharp pang of hunger hit him, making him fold his arm over his stomach as an attempt to be subtle in his actions and that he wasn't in pain. He nodded.

"Yeah, I was... Would you like to come with me?" He asked. Hector smiled and nodded, immediately agreeing. Soon, Jaydon shut down the system and Hector took out his game as the two got ready to leave. Jaydon walked into his room and dug into his closet, pulling out a sweater and pulling it over his head. It was probably going to be much colder than usual, considering what he saw on the weather channel. While the show was on break, it showed what today's weather was and how it was going to be for the next week and it said the next few days will be pretty cold... Cloudy with a chance of snowfall.

He walked out and Hector already had his stuff ready, waiting for Jaydon to finished up. Hector looked up and smiled at Jaydon. "Okay, let's go!" Hector said, motioning his arm, telling Jaydon to hurry up. The two walked out and Jaydon locked the door behind them. They walked together, starting up a short and simple conversation that either Hector or Jaydon could think of. Hector kept asking about Jaydon’s friends, while Jaydon could only think of if Hector went to school or something. Hector just replied "Yes" before asking about his friends again. So, Jaydon replied honestly and let Hector continue the conversation.

Not long after, they both made it to the Plaza and that's when Hector stopped and pointed. "Hey... Isn't that Blake?" he asked. Jaydon paused and glanced over to where Hector was pointing at and quickly, they saw Blake disappearing into the underground in the forest. Jaydon blinked at this, a bit surprised to see Blake. He remembered a while back that Blake mentioned he was actually afraid to go in the underground areas unless absolutely necessary... Unless that was someone else he knew and he was getting mixed up. Nevertheless, he was still surprised.

"Yeah, that's him." Jaydon replied, wondering what on earth that man was doing. Hector hummed and stared in that direction for a moment before turning away. He smiled.  
"Okay, whatever. Let's get something to eat." Hector said walking by Jaydon and into the Pizza Parlor. Jaydon stood there for a moment, thinking if he should follow Blake since he was basically looking for him earlier. However, he shook his head and followed Hector inside.

Immediately the strong smell of the Pizza Parlor met Jaydon as he was quickly warmed up. The smell of Hot Sauce was still strong in the air from the week before when the Pizzatron 3000 went out of control. The Pizza Parlor was packed like usual, with Islanders chattering all around, talking about various topics from silly things to downright offensive. Music filled the air, drowning out most of the conversations and giving the Pizza Parlor a nice feel to it.

Looking around, Jaydon saw that Hector had already found a seat. Hector pulled out the chair and sat down, glancing over to Jaydon and gesturing his hand, telling Jaydon to come and sit. So, he did. Quickly walking over, Jaydon glanced around the area and watched the Islanders around, messing around with each other, laughing, and eating. Someone was crying in the corner, but this wasn't a strange sight. It probably had something to do with relationships again.

"So, what are you gonna get?" Hector asked, looking over to the desk where an employee was working. Jaydon shrugged, saying he was just going to get a fish dish pizza. Hector smiled. "Oh, cool! I'll get one too." Jaydon wondered if Hector actually liked that kind of Pizza. Kind of like how Gary's favourite was Fish pizza with extra cheese and anchovies... Don't ask how he knows that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just accept there will be short chapters lmao


	17. COME GET YA J U I C E

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"And I said - You think I don't know that?" Hector joked, continuing on with what he was saying. Jaydon sort of spaced out in the middle of his sentence. So, he had no idea what Hector was even talking about. It was a little hard to focus from all the noise in the Pizza Parlor and he was beginning to get a headache... He was wrong about it having a nice feel, it was so hectic! At least Hector and he were done eating by now and were just talking, so perhaps they could leave soon, if not, right away.

Suddenly, Hector stopped mid-sentence, looking over Jaydon’s head with a surprised look. "Oh, hey. I didn't know you were going to be here." A familiar voice said. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and turned around to see who spoke, only to come to a stop. There stood Royce and Hassan who gave the two a look. Royce pointed at Jaydon and Hector, their finger waggling in the air as they did. "Surprising seeing you... So, what are you two doing here?" they asked. Jaydon smiled at the sight of the two and turned around fully.

"I would ask you the same..." Jaydon shot back. "But we were eating. Duh." He replied. Royce breathed out a laugh and nodded.

"Yeah, we're here to do the same as well," Hassan replied before chuckling. "Why else would we come here, anyway?" he said with a smile, adjusting his round red glasses. Jaydon just nodded and glanced over to Hector who was now smiling. "Oh." Hassan started. "Are you Hector?" He asked, finally seeming to recognize him. 

Hector perked up and quickly nodded. "Y--Yeah, that's me!" He replied. "Nice to meet you!" Hassan smiled back at him and reached forwards for a handshake, which Hector happily obliged. "You're Hassan and-- Uh..." Hector paused to think for a moment before snapping his fingers. "PEgg-- I mean--" He quietly cursed to himself, pulling his hand away to think.

"... Royce." They replied, crossing their arms in an obviously annoyed manner.

Hector pointed at them, still smiling. "Right... Royce." He said. "Anyways, nice to finally meet you guys. I heard a lot about you two!" Both Hassan and Royce raised their eyebrows in surprise and glanced over to Jaydon, who wasn't paying attention and was now staring at something on the floor. The volume around them had gotten much louder and it was simply hard to focus and think on anything. All Jaydon wanted to do by now was leave, considering what was happening was literally some stupid drama stuff going on in the back and by now, some employees had to intervene and actually kick some Islanders out.

"Yeah, Jaydon talks about your group all the time!" Hector continued. "You're the one who painted his nails, right?" he asked. Royce nodded and explained that they were kind of proud for the way they looked. However, looking over to Jaydon's hands, they noticed that the paint had already begun to chip and they sighed at the sight. 

Hassan adjusted his glasses. "I didn't know he talked about us a lot." He quietly pointed out. There was a short pause between the four before Hassan cleared his throat and shifted awkwardly, his voice coming down to a whisper. "...Did... What did he say?" He quietly asked, obviously a little nervous.

"Oh, nothing bad!" Hector assured. "Just a few facts and generally what you all were doing at the time." He paused to think for a moment. "Well, for the most part." He muttered. Hector glanced over to Jaydon with a smile, as if about to say something but paused, noticing how bothered he seemed to be. "Oh... Jaydon?" he said, pulling him back to reality. "Are you doing alright?"

Jaydon blinked a few times and nodded, glancing around the room as he did. "Yeah... I'm fine. It's just loud." He replied, shifting in his seat. Hector glanced around the area and raised an eyebrow, breathing out a laugh as he did. He turned back to the others, who were by now looking over to the commotion of the crowd of Islanders just nearby with curious looks on their faces.

"Hey, I think we should go." Hector said, gaining the attention of the two. Hassan blinked and nodded. Royce shrugged and mentioned that they should go and order their food now since that was why they came here at the Pizza Parlor in the first place. Hassan agreed and the two turned around and walked towards the counter at the front. Hector sighed and tapped the table twice, getting Jaydon’s attention once again and smiled at him. "Come on! Let's go over to your house." He said, getting up from his seat.

Jaydon paused and blinked a few times, furrowing his eyebrows as he did. He couldn't register what Hector just said but simply nodded in response, following Hector out of the Pizza Parlor. Jaydon glanced behind him and saw Royce and Hassan speaking to each other. However, they looked a little irked... Or unsettled. It was hard to tell, but it was clear the two were not happy and Jaydon only had to assume that it was probably because of the noise around them.

Walking out and the doors closing behind them, the sudden silence was a little deafening, aside from the ringing in Jaydon’s ears. Hector continued walking and glanced behind him and smiled at Jaydon. "Come on, you’re being so slow!" he said with a joking attitude. Jaydon paused and soon smiled back at Hector, his face feeling flush at the sight of his smile. Nearly stumbling on his feet, he caught up to Hector and walked beside him. Hector spoke of Hassan and Royce, mentioning how he understood why Jaydon was friends with them and said that they seemed nice. 

Jaydon breathed out a laugh, nodding as he did. He agreed that they were nice people to be around but admittingly, he didn't hang out with them much. Hector cocked his head slightly and asked why not. Jaydon shrugged and replied that he just didn't make the attempt to hang out with them... He only ever saw them when walking around and running into them or Blake being the reason for their interaction.

Hector raised an eyebrow. "So... You're like acquaintances with them?" he asked. 

Jaydon blinked and shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so." He said, itching his eyebrow. "Blake likes to think we are... So, we sort of play along." He admitted. "But I guess we sort have gotten to know each other." He finished. Hector stared over to Jaydon for a long moment but soon hummed in response, pausing before mention how that was a little strange. Jaydon thought about for a moment and had to admit that it was a little weird... But he didn't want to say much of anything else about it.

"So, what do you think we should do when we get over to your house?" Hector asked. Jaydon was taken a little off guard, not realizing they were going over to his house. He wasn't paying attention earlier. So, he was surprised. He paused to think about it before shrugging.

"I... Have a few games at home." He said. "Also, some movie tapes here and there." He continued, thinking about what else was at his house that could provide entertainment that wasn't so mundane. "I have the princess diaries on tape." He mentioned, laughing to himself as he did. "Even some--"

"How about you can teach me some cooking stuff you know?" Hector suggested, smiling as he did. Jaydon practically choked on his words and stuttered as he did, looking over to his doppelganger with surprise. Hector breathed out a laugh, obviously noticing Jaydon’s reaction. "It would be fun, you know? You're a good cook I hear!" he finished. Jaydon swallowed and nervously let out a laugh, adjusting his handkerchief as he did.

"S-Sure..." He stuttered out. "I don't see why not."


	18. Cut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrow cooking, huh?

The two walked in, taking off their shoes and closing the door behind them. Hector settled onto the couch, waiting for whenever Jaydon was ready to show him anything that had to do with cooking. Jaydon had to think what to make, considering that they literally just finished eating earlier. He thought of just cutting some vegetables since that was the easiest to teach. He could store the cut-up vegetables into some plastic containers to keep for later since he wasn't really thinking about making some sort of meal at this time.

"I-- I guess I'll show you how to cut some vegetables..." Jaydon said, digging into the kitchen drawers and pulling out a few knives he had. He pulled out a Paring knife, Utility knife, and a large Chef's Knife. That was his favourite to use when cutting, considering it was an all-purpose kitchen tool. Suddenly he perked up and smiled, turning towards Hector at the couch. "Oh, I know how to make bread. I can teach you how to make bread!" he said with excitement, still holding the large knife up.

Hector peaked over the couch and grinned. "Oh yeah, sure." He said. "I would love to know how to make bread...! But, how about we start on the vegetables?" he asked, shifting his position and letting his arms hang over the couch to fully face Jaydon. "Besides, wouldn't it be convenient to have some pre-cut veggies sitting around the fridge?" he asked.

Jaydon chuckled and placing the knife down onto the counter. "Yeah, I thought the same thing," he said, breathing out a sigh. "So, yeah! I guess I'll show you what a Julienne and a Batonnet cut is." He glanced back over to Hector and saw that he legit looked a bit confused and Jaydon couldn't help but smile at his expression.

"I have never heard of those before." Hector admitted, getting up from the couch and walking over to Jaydon. "But I guess I'll figure out in a bit." He said, looking up at him with a smile. Jaydon blinked and smiled back at him, his face flushing. He nodded and stepped over to the fridge and dug into it, pulling out some carrots and celery. He walked by Hector and opened a lower cupboard and pulled out a sack of potatoes, opening the bag and taking out 4. He placed them onto the counter nearby them and quickly, Jaydon kneeled down and dug into another lower cupboard and pulled out a cutting board.

Looking up he saw that Hector was holding the large chef's knife, lightly placing his finger onto the blade as he seemed to closely inspect it. "Oh, watch it." Jaydon warned him. "I just sharpened those the other day."

Hector smiled, breathing out a laugh as he did. "Yes, I noticed!" he hummed and placed the knife down. "Wouldn't want to get any cuts on our fingers, now won't we?" he said, pointing his finger at Jaydon.

Jaydon stood up from the floor and placed down the cutting board, the wood tapping against the counter. "Yeah, that would stain my board." He idly said, reaching over to the vegetables. He paused and looked over to the sink and stepped towards it, turning the tap and letting the water run for a moment before washing the veggies underneath. "Would you like to peel the potatoes?" he asked, glancing over to Hector, who was just observing what Jaydon was doing but nodded in response. He paused and glanced around confused for a moment before Jaydon pointed at the drawer just beside him. "The peeler is in there."

Hector paused. "Ah." He said, opening the said drawer and digging around for a moment before finding the aforementioned vegetable peeler. Once Jaydon was done cleaning the vegetables, he dried his hands off on a nearby cloth and dug into the same drawer, quickly pulling out an extra peeler he apparently had. Hector watched and raised an eyebrow when Jaydon wiggled the peeler at him as if to show it off.

Jaydon picked up a carrot and began peeling as Hector peeled a potato. Jaydon didn't take to long to peel before he was onto the next one, while Hector was still on this first potato. "You wouldn't want to throw away the peelings." Jaydon idly pointed out. "They could be good for stock making or compost for plants and stuff." He continued, peeling away at the carrot, picking up the pairing knife and cutting off the ends of the carrots.

"Do you have plants?" Hector asked, finally finishing with the first potato and reaching over to another. Jaydon paused to think before shaking his head.

"No." He replied, placing the knife down and picking up the peeler again. "But I would of if I didn't miss Rockhopper the other day." He replied with disappointment clear in his voice. "I completely forgot that he was on the island and I missed him."  
Hector breathed out a laugh. "Do you like plants?" he asked, slowing peeling away at the potato. Jaydon shrugged and said that he wasn't sure if he would be able to take care of it anyway. He had a tendency to forget things and wouldn't remember about them until it was too late. Hector hummed and continued peeling. Suddenly, Jaydon paused mid-peel and looked over to Hector.

"Did you wash your hands?" He asked. Hector stopped and slowly putting the potato down. He shook his head and sidestepped behind Jaydon and towards the sink, turning on the faucet and soaking his hands underneath. Jaydon chuckled and shrugged it off. "It's okay, we can wash the vegetables again." He pointed out, placing down the last carrot and picking up one of the potatoes. Hector finished, only quickly getting his hands soapy before washing them off. He reached over to the same cloth from before and dried his hands and tossed it onto the back of a chair.

"Say, you can peel pretty quickly..." Hector said, pointing his peeler at Jaydon as he picked up the same potato from before. "Did you go to classes or something?" he asked. Jaydon shook his head and quickly replied that he didn't, only in high school did he learn the basics. He admitted that he watched a lot of cooking shows and learned from there since that was what he watched when he wasn't doing anything... And he wasn't doing anything almost all the time. So, he had a lot of time on his hands.

Hector hummed in response and finally finished the potato, reaching for another only to pause and look over and see that there were no more things to peel. Jaydon had already taken the last potato and had begun peeling it. So, he of stood there, waiting for Jaydon to finish. Not long after, he finished, placing down the potato and glancing over to Hector. "Um... You can wash the vegetables and I'll find somewhere to put all these peelings." He said, stepping by Hector and sweeping up the peels with his hand. Hector sort of rolled the veggies over to the sink, letting them fall in, the sound of multiple dull thuds hitting the inside of the sink.

Jaydon swept the peelings into a little pile and leaned down to look into the lower cupboards, searching for any sort of container to put these in. It didn't take to long to find a few and he pulled them out, placing some extras onto the table behind them and grabbing a medium sized container and casually swept the peelings into it. He walked by Hector and simply placed the container into the fridge for later use. Just as he returned, Hector had finished washing the vegetables and placed them nearby the cutting board. 

"Okay, here." Jaydon passed Hector the chef's knife and gestured Hector to come a little closer to the board, placing down a carrot. "What do you know...? W--With cutting that is." Jaydon asked. Hector shrugged and said he only knew how to cut things into cubes or roughly slice things and that was about it. Jaydon nodded and itched the side of his head, wondering what he should teach. Julian cuts can be easily learned. It's literally just cutting the vegetables into 'match-sticks'... That's what he learned from someone he watched called the cuts. Which didn't bother him at all, because of how the person acted in the videos. She was honestly a cute lady and he respected her a lot.

Jaydon paused and got Hector to slice the carrot in half and soon explained how to cut it, making Hector realize that it really wasn't all that hard. Jaydon watched Hector slowly slice the carrot and it was obvious that Hector hadn't really cut many vegetables, besides roughly chopping them. Hector paused and smiled, thinking he was done cutting this carrot until Jaydon told him to flip it and cut that side as well and explained that it was to get the thin cuts that gave the cut a 'match-stick' look. Hector paused but simply complied, doing as he was told. Finally, they got the look that Jaydon talked about and they smiled at each other before Jaydon reached back over to the table and picked up a container and swept the slices into it.

Not long after, they simply continued slicing and dicing the various carrots, potatoes, and celery that Jaydon had brought out and cleaned. Up until the last one, which was a potato, Jaydon thought of one cut he used to cut onions, which was called 'Parallel Cutting'. Since he hadn't brought out Onions; even though he should have; opted to use the last potato as an example and picked it up and got Hector to slice it in half. He explained what he meant by 'Parallel Cutting', which was like it said, you lay the food flat on the cutting board and angle the knives parallel to what you're cutting, in order to cut through the food.

Jaydon breathed out a laugh and admitted he couldn't remember how many times he had accidentally cut himself while doing this and warned Hector to keep his fingers tucked in and to not put to close to the close and instead make sure that his knuckles were touching the flat part of the blade to make sure that Hector could get precise cuts and to not hurt himself in the process. Jaydon paused and looked at his hand, bending his fingers in and out, unsure what the part below the knuckles was called. He shook his head and just pointed at his fingers to make sure Hector could get a much clearer understanding.

Hector simply nodded and proceeded to cut the potato parallel, like what Jaydon said. He explained that you should cut it at least three times and said that this would work better on an onion, but he didn't think of bringing on out earlier. So, they had to work with what they got. Again, Hector nodded and did as he was told.

However, on the third cut, Hector suddenly made a noise and pulled away, clutching his hand close to his chest for a moment before looking down at his hand. Jaydon stopped and saw that Hector had cut himself and the cut seemed pretty deep. Blood dripped out and splattered onto the cutting board and immediately, Jaydon pulled Hector's hand away.

"Oh god-- Are you okay?" He asked, genuinely concerned.

Hector smiled and waved him off. "Yeah, I'm fine." He looked down towards the cutting board and sighed, his smile fading. "Sorry about... Getting blood onto your board." He idly pointed out. Jaydon shook his head, reassuring Hector that it was fine and said he had a first aid kit in the bathroom. Jaydon was about to usher Hector over before he stopped. "Do you have Hydrogen Peroxide?" Hector asked. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and nodded, saying that it was in the bathroom as well and paused, asking why. "Hydrogen peroxide is good at getting rid of fresh blood stains, so maybe if we're quick, we can clean your board before it stains." He pointed out. Jaydon paused and nodded, walking over to the bathroom with Hector following just behind.

Jaydon dug underneath the sink and pulled out the kit and opened it, letting Hector do what he can since he was technically a nurse. So, he could do what he knows to himself. Jaydon doubted that he would be able to help anyway. He closed the bathroom sinks little door and reached into a cabinet above, pulling out said Hydrogen Peroxide and stared at it for a long moment. 3%, it was. He glanced over to Hector, who was to busy to pay to much attention to what Jaydon was doing. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and walked out of the bathroom and back to the kitchen.

He swept the potato off of the board and placed the knife nearby, pulling the board to the sink and washed it underneath some water. He opened the bottle of peroxide and poured some onto it, watching the bloodied stain soon fade away. He raised an eyebrow and put the bottle to the side and continued washing the board like normal, with soap and all. He remembers his high school teacher telling him to never put your cutting boards under direct water because that would cause the wood to warp. However, he shrugged it off for now. This was literally blood on his board and if it does warp, that was okay. He picked up the knife and washed it as well, seeing that it also had only a bit of blood on it too.

As soon as he was finished; drying it off and all, Jaydon began sweeping the cut-up vegetables into separate containers and began putting them into the neatly into the fridge and cleaned up the rest of the mess on the counter, wiping up the leftover bits of peelings of the vegetables and whatever was left on the counter. Soon, Hector walked out of the bathroom with his finger now with just a band-aid on it, prompting Jaydon to turn towards him. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

Hector just breathed out a laugh and nodded, waving Jaydon off. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He reassured. "It's just a little cut, nothing to be so worried about!" Hector smiled and wiggled his finger as he spoke. "Besides that, did the Peroxide work?" he asked, looking over to the board that still sat in the sink. Jaydon turned around and stared at it, before turning back and nodding.

"Yeah, I guess so." He replied. Honestly, he hoped that next time he used the board that it wouldn't leave the taste of the peroxide on whatever he would be cutting. However, he shrugged it off. It wasn't like he was going to be making anything for anyone anytime soon since he lived alone and didn't really make things for the group. They never asked, so whatever.

"Well, anyways." Hector started. "Would you wanna watch those tapes you mentioned earlier?" he asked. Quickly, Jaydon nodded and the two walked to the living room where Jaydon set up the VCR and sorted through whatever tapes he had. Which were not a lot but they ended up watching the movie he suggested before.


	19. ppopcorn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just shift moods, huh

Jaydon cleaned up the living room, picking up a bowl of popcorn that hadn't been finished and some cups that were on the floor. He walked over to the kitchen and placed the bowl on the counter and putting the cups into the sinks, briefly washing his hands and drying his them on his pants. He picked up the bowl again and took a handful of popcorn, practically shoving it into his mouth and simply dumping the rest into the nearby trashcan. By now, the movie had long since ended and for a while now, Hector had been in the bathroom and Jaydon didn't really know why but didn't question it at all. 

However, not long after, Hector walked out of the bathroom, damn nearly stumbling out as he did and immediately catching Jaydon’s attention. Looking over, he saw that Hector didn't look focused on anything in particular and seemed to be struggling to even stand. "Oh my god, are you doing okay?" Jaydon asked, putting the bowl down onto the table. He walked up to Hector and helped him from falling over. "What's wrong? Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked, holding Hector's arm.

Hector yanked his arm away and shook his head, surprising the man. "No, no! I'm fine, it’s okay!" he assured, giving Jaydon a nervous smile. Jaydon stepped away and furrowed his eyebrows in response, doubting Hector's words. "I've been here for too long, I need to go." Hector continued, shuffling towards the door. Jaydon followed, afraid that Hector would tumble over.

"Seriously, you're not looking too good," Jaydon said. "Are you sure you're doing okay? Do you need something?" he continued. Hector hummed, shaking his head as he did and slipping on his shoes. Without another word, Hector opened the door and practically ran out, slamming the door behind him and leaving Jaydon confused as to what just happened.

Was he sick and needed to see a doctor? Or did he have a certain kind of medication he had to take every few hours? That would probably explain his behaviour and honestly, he couldn't help but feel really bad for not knowing this could happen... He sighed. He probably should have followed Hector to make sure he really was doing okay.

Although, it was pretty late at night... So, it was probably the best for Hector to go home anyways. Jaydon picked the bowl back up and quickly cleaned it in the sink, dried it, and put it away back into its place in the cupboards. He then turned the TV off, since it was simply a blue screen saying 'stop' in the top corner with the little white square beside the word. He then turned off the lights in the kitchen and living room and he walked off to his room, where he closed the door and tossed his pants off onto the floor and changed into a different shirt to sleep in.

He jumped into bed and pulled the blankets up into a comfortable position, hoping that he would gather enough of his own body heat in the blankets to sleep comfortably without feeling so damn cold. However, he suddenly remembered he forgot to plug in his phone. Jaydon deeply sighed and turned around, thinking that he'll just charge it tomorrow since he had already gotten comfortable in bed.

...

Jaydon stared at the wall for a long time, the darkness of the room making him feel even much more comfortable. Although, his mind was a bit restless. He couldn't stop thinking about today and the fact that Hector was the one who initiated the events made Jaydon’s chest fill with butterfly’s and made him feel all warm and fuzzy. He couldn't believe that Hector wanted to learn what he knew and even suggested a movie afterwards.

Breathing out, Jaydon turned onto his back and stared at the ceiling before grabbing his pillow from beneath him and covering his face with it. He let out a yell and threw his pillow onto his chest and happily let out a laugh. He turned onto his side again and wrapped his arms around his pillow, holding it close. He grinned and buried his face into the pillow again as he let out a giggle. However, Jaydon suddenly stopped. He realized something that immediately made his heart drop.

Obviously, he had feelings for Hector... But what if he didn't return his feelings? Then what would he do? Of course, the logical thing to do was to simply get over him... But, honestly, Jaydon didn't want to. How would Hector even react to him, anyway? Jaydon didn't even know him for too long, so he imagined it might be a little weird to him. But, God. It felt so good to be around him. He honestly didn't want Hector to leave. He wanted him to be as close as possible, he wanted to make sure Hector was safe and to support him throughout his life, if possible. 

But he was scared to tell Hector. He didn't want to scare him off by his feelings and he didn't want to lose someone he cared so deeply for. Of course, he knew he had gotten attached much too quickly for comfort and he didn't want to admit that he did, but it was obvious and it was dumb and he wished he hadn't gotten attached.

He pulled the pillow closer and breathed out. This was terrible.


	20. hugh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> guh

Hassan and Royce stared at Jaydon from the kitchen table as he wiped down the stove and kitchen counters. Hassan shook his head. "Jaydon, I can't believe you." He said, crossing his arms. "So, what you're basically saying here is that you're... Into him?" he asked. Jaydon scrubbed a spot on the stove, making a face as he did.

"Well, I didn't say that." He explained, picking up a wooden spoon and dropping it into the sink. Jaydon didn't want to admit to them that he did. Mostly because he had a feeling they had something to say about Hector or how Jaydon seemed to get attached to people way too quickly. So, he didn't really want to say anything to them. "All I said was that we cut a few stuff together and I thought it was nice..." he continued as he shrugged. The two stared at Jaydon again, giving him that look where it seemed that they knew and Jaydon intensely stared at his hand as he scrubbed.

Hassan shrugged. "Alright then." he finished. "Anyways, what are you going to do today, anyway?" he asked.

Jaydon shrugged again. "I dunno." He replied honestly. He didn't know what he was going to be up to at all today and sort of wondered if he can just sleep the entire day through and possibly watch some movies or play some games if he had the motivation later. Or he can go out and exercise or something like that. He enjoyed doing that... So, he guessed he had a few things to do later. However, it was 7 PM and he had just come back home from rehearsal and by now, it was almost done and almost time to actually fucking put out the play. Soon as they were done with Ruby and the Ruby, they were going to go straight to 'A Humbug Holiday'. Which Jaydon didn't really enjoy doing at all. It was so dumb and he was actually thinking of just opting out this time. He hated Fruitcake. 

"I guess I'll just stay home," Jaydon replied. The reason why Royce and Hassan were here being because while Jaydon was coming home, they walked into each other and immediately, the two wanted to talk to him about something. However, they didn't really go into detail until they got to his house. They still hadn't seemed to say what they wanted to talk to him about and Jaydon was getting a little antsy by now. Stepping back over the sink, he turned on the water and got the cloth he had to wet again, putting a bit of soap into his cloth and letting it get very bubbly. "What did you two want to talk about anyway?" he asked, rinsing the soap out, so he wouldn't get to much soap onto the counters when he wipes it.

Royce and Hassan looked over to each other and they gave each other looks, making it seem they knew whatever they would say would be a bit bothersome...And not really in a joking way. "Just going to say it now," Royce started. "I don't trust Hector." They bluntly said, looking up to Jaydon. Jaydon paused with his cleaning and turned his head towards them, a bit confused with what they said.  
"Something about him sets me off in a way that we... Can't really explain." Hassan said, adjusting his glasses. Jaydon furrowed his eyebrows at them.  
"So?"  
Hassan rolled his eyes. "What we're trying to say is to be careful around that guy." he continued. "Something's not right with him and honestly," he paused and glanced over to Royce, who was looking down at their nails and picking at them. "We wouldn't really want you to get hurt... Or something." Jaydon’s confusion rose even more as the urge to defend Hector came up. Yet he stopped that urge and stayed quiet about that... Or so he thought.

"What will he even do?" Jaydon asked, putting down the cloth. "He isn't even like that!" he continued. Royce and Hassan sort of looked at each other. "He's a good guy and as far as I know, he hadn't hurt anyone in anyway and he's just--!" Jaydon stopped and looked up at the two and saw they were staring at him.

"So, you really do like him." Royce said with a smile.

Jaydon let out a huff. "Yeah, so what?" he said, crossing his arms. "I don't believe that there's something wrong with him. I don't see anything wrong with him."

Hassan shrugged. "Yeah, sure I get that. But you're not very good at catching signals, we all know this." he said. "But we're not trying to convince you to stop being friends with him or any of the sort... We're only telling you to be careful."

Royce nodded, flicking their head to get some of their hair out of the way. "Yeah and really, you're probably already blinded or whatever." they finished, standing up from their chair and adjusting their jacket. Jaydon stood there, a bit confused as to what they meant by 'blinded’ but decided to just ignore it for now. Hassan followed not long after and adjusted his glasses, explaining that they were going to go. Apparently, this was all they were going to tell Jaydon and he was a bit annoyed about it. They also said that there's something going on at the Mine shack that they were invited to and they asked if Jaydon wanted to follow along. However, he already had a whole lot of nothing planned for the rest of the day and decided not to go, shaking his head in response.  
The two nodded and said their goodbyes and swiftly left his home, where Jaydon leaned against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed. He was annoyed that they had the nerve to come up to him, ask about his love interest, and tell him to be careful around him like he was some sort of sociopath or something. Nothings wrong with Hector, he's a good guy! He's a doctor who saves lives and helps the ill, so obviously he's a good guy by default!

...

Jaydon sighed and stared down at the floor. Of course, they could be right though... Something actually did strike him as odd when he met him. Coming up to him and saying that he was looking for him and was even waiting for him in the audience seats at his work place like as if he had met him before. Hector even heard about some things he hadn't really shared with anyone... He shook his head. It could be a coincidence and Hector heard of these things from Blake. Or someone he knew...?  
He made a face and decided not to think about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short :3c


	21. Yeah :-)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> whoops something happened lmao

Jaydon sat on the couch watching tv, since that's what all he could think of what to do. It's been a day since Hector practically ran out and Jaydon was a little anxious that he actually did something wrong that day... However, he couldn't think of what it could have possibly been, but it still bothered him. He sighed and switched channels, stopping on the news channel. Apparently, there had been another death; Said the news reporter. A body of a women had been found in her home late last night and there had been an obvious break in and a struggle. However, somehow there had been no evidence as to who did it so far. There were no witnesses and no security footage of the break-in... There also were no complaints of loud noises or anything of the sort.

A young man had come over to the house in the early morning, noticing the obvious break in and the mess in the home from the obvious struggle and had discovered the body on the bathroom floor. The police had said that the cause of death was multiple stab wounds to the chest. Jaydon made a face and continued to watch the panning shot of the home and soon raised an eyebrow as he began to process what was being seen. He recognized that home to belong to one of Blakes relatives home. He knew this because one Christmas Blake had invited Jaydon over for dinner since he really didn't have anywhere to go at the time. Of course, he didn't explain to Blake about his relationship with his parents but that was a story for another day.

The new reporter continued to speak about the case, saying that police were currently looking for any sort of evidence and the murderer. They then told whoever was watching the channel to stay safe and to keep your doors locked and not to walk around late at night. Then just like that, the topic of the news changed to events coming up on the island.

Jaydon turned off the Tv, staring at himself in the reflection of the screen. He felt objectively much worse for the way he acted towards Blake the other day. Jaydon wondered if he should go and find Blake to see if he was doing alright... Well, obviously he probably isn't, but it wouldn't hurt to go and try. However, he had no idea where Blake could have been and now that he thought about it, he didn't even see him at work. So, instead, he decided to send a text message. Honestly, he was too afraid to really actually go face to face and talk to him.

He pulled out his phone and stared at the screen, unsure what exactly to say. He just simply didn't want to say the wrong words and end up making things worse. He had a history of doing that completely on accident and it was terrible. Sighing to himself, he slowly began tapping out the words into the text.

_"hey i hope your doing ok" - 8:40PM_

He stared the message, unsure what else to say. So, he sent it as it is and put his phone down onto the couch. He wasn't really sure what to do and since it was getting sort of late, he thought that he might as well practice his lines since today he actually forgot his lines at work and sort of got in trouble for it. So, he sat up and went to go find his bag. Looking around briefly, he stopped and spun around as he searched. Realizing that his bag wasn't where he left it, which was by the kitchen table, he squinted and thought about where he could have possibly left it.

Thinking about it, he stopped and let out a groan. He didn't actually bring it home at all and was still at work in the backstage. Cursing to himself, he grabbed his sweater and ventured out, locking the door behind him and making his way back to the stage.  
The days were short and the nights were longer now. So, it had gotten much dark than it was just about an hour ago. Well, it was the near the end of November, so of course, the days would be shorter. They usually were around this time... Also, much colder too. Snow slowly drifted down from the thick clouded dark night sky as a chilling breeze whistled through the trees and leaving Jaydon a bit chilled. As he walked, he was cautious of his surroundings. There was a literal serial killer on the loose. So, who knows where they could pop out from. They literally could be anywhere, following and watching their next prey...

"Hey, Jaydon!"

Jaydon jumped and let out a shriek, spinning around to see who it was. There stood Hector looking a bit surprised, taking a step back and immediately, Jaydon breathed out a sigh of relief. "Oh... It's just you." He said, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Hey, Hector... You surprised me."

Hector breathed out a laugh. "Yeah, no kidding. Are you doing okay?" he asked. Jaydon just nodded, saying that he was just a bit on edge, that was all. Hector nodded and asked why that was, and Jaydon sort of looked at him as if he was crazy, pointing out about the murder that happened the other day and that there was a literal serial killer on the loose. Hector hummed. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about that at all," he assured, leaving Jaydon a bit confused. "I doubt that murderer would come after you, anyways! Have you ever looked at yourself recently?"

Jaydon looked down at himself, still confused as to what Hector was trying to say. "You're a big guy, Jaydon!" Hector pointed out. "An Intimidating big guy!" he continued, emphasizing his words. Jaydon paused and pursed his lips, now realizing that was true. He felt his face heat in embarrassment and immediately, Hector patted his back. "Heey, no need to feel ashamed about it..." he assured. "You seem strong and you could protect yourself with your strength" he continued. 

There was a short pause between the two as Jaydon stared down at himself. Hector was right. He was relatively strong and could actually prove it if he wanted... But that wasn't really appropriate right now at all. Hector shook his head. "Anyway, what are you doing out this late?" he asked. Jaydon blinked and raised an eyebrow, thinking the same thing for Hector.

"I'm just going back to the stage to grab my bag... I left it there earlier and it has something that I need." Jaydon explained, turning around and continued walking. Hector followed just behind and smiled up at him. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and looked down at Hector. "So... What are you doing out?" he asked. Hector paused for a short moment and shrugged in reply.

"I was just out for a walk... That's all!" he replied with a smile. Jaydon couldn't help but feel a little uneasy at his reply and let out a nervous chuckle. Hector immediately noticed and tilted his head at him, looking confused before it clicked. "Oh... That sounds weird, doesn't it?" he asked. Jaydon didn't reply, not wanting to admit that it kind of was. There was a short silence between the two and Jaydon soon swallowed nervously. He thought about what happened the other day and furrowed his eyebrows in response, turning his head towards the smaller man beside him.

"So... What happened the other day?" he asked.

Hector raised his eyebrows and curiously hummed but processed what was said. "Oh, that..." he breathed out and didn't say anything for a long moment. "Yeah... I got sick that day. I have medicine I have to take and I forgot to take it." he explained, shrugging as he did. "Sorry if I scared you." Jaydon blinked and thought about it. He had never seen anyone act that way if they hadn't taken their medication... Then again, Hector probably has to take a special sort of medicine that Jaydon didn't really know about at all. However, this explanation did make Jaydon relax a bit. At least now he knew that he didn't do anything wrong at all that day.

Soon, they came to a stop as they finally arrived in the Plaza. Hector looked up at the building and blinked. "I'll wait here for you." he idly said, leaning against the ticket booth. Jaydon nodded and told him he won't be too long, pushing the doors open and walking inside.

Once walking in, Jaydon saw that the lights were still on and he immediately went and searched for his bag. However, once the doors closed and the wind was gone, Jaydon stopped at the sound of people talking and quiet sobbing. Looking up, he heard it was coming from the back of the stage and he was hesitant to go back there but seeing that his bag wasn't really anywhere in the front, he knew he would have to go back there. Slowly, he climbed the stage and quietly walked to the back, hoping not to disturb whoever was back there.

He stopped by the edge of the wall and listened, trying to recognize who was there. Immediately, he recognized one of the voices to belong to Willow, the new stage director. Although, he couldn't figure out who the other voices were. So, he came around the corner and stopped, immediately regretting his decision. There on the floor sat Blake, quietly sobbing and not noticing Jaydon even walking in. Willow looked up at Jaydon with a surprised looked, along with Skye. It seemed like they were alone.

"Oh... Jaydon." Willow said, prompting Blake to look up. "I didn't think you would be here this late..." They continued. Jaydon swallowed nervously and broke eye contact with them, shifting awkwardly as he did.

"Sorry... I'm just here to grab my bag." he explained. "I left it here by accident." Skye pointed behind them with their thumb, pointing out where his bag was located. There against the wall was his bag. Jaydon pursed his lips and glanced back over to the three and opened his mouth, hesitating to speak. "Ar--... What's wrong?" he sheepishly asked. Willow rubbed circles into Blakes back as he continued to sob, now seeming to ignore Jaydon’s presence. 

"His mother died the other night." They bluntly explained. "She was murdered."

Jaydon remembered the news report and immediately felt his heart sink at the realization of how much pain Blake must have been in right now. He had no idea what to do or what to say. So, he stood there in silence, too afraid to really say anything. He swallowed and stuttered. "O-Oh... I'm... I'm sorry." There was a long silence between the three, the only sound being Blakes despair. Jaydon shifted and shuffled over to his bag, picking it up and began slowly stepping backwards, unsure what else to say. "I... I should go," he said, pointing his thumb behind him. "I'm really sorry about what happened..." he finished, about to step out from the space.

"Wait--" Blake said, getting up and quickly stepping towards Jaydon, suddenly pulling him into a hug and surprising him. Jaydon froze and clenched his hands as he nervously looked over to Willow and Skye. There was a long silence once again before Blake's hug tightened. "Jaydon," he said with a quavering voice. "I don't know what to do." he continued, letting out another sob. "I'm so scared, I don't know what to do," he said, his voice increasing in volume. Jaydon pursed his lips and soon returned the hug, patting Blakes back. He felt so bad for his friend, he had never really seen him like this before.

Blake continued rambling on about how he was scared and lost, not knowing what to do about anything. That was all he could really say before breaking down even more. He sobbed into Jaydon’s chest unceasingly, hands clutching at his sweater and all Jaydon could do was stand there, letting Blake continue. He looked back up at the other two, a bit scared and unsure what to do as if asking for their help. "I could have done something-- Anything to stop this, I should have been there for her--" he sniffled and let out another sob. "I wish that I was there, I should have been there, but I wasn't. I should have been there to stop this!"

Jaydon breathed out and continued to try and comfort his friend the best way he could. He couldn't help but wonder why he was the one doing this when clearly, he wasn't really good at it and was just... Generally, a really awkward guy to be doing this. However, he tried his best. Blake continued rambling and Jaydon rubbed his back in an attempt to comfort him again. He opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. "It..." he stuttered. "It wasn't your fault." he simply said. "None of it. It-... It's okay..."  
Blake buried his face in Jaydon’s chest and his sobbing began to soften. Jaydon looked back up at Willow and Skye and saw them nod at him, basically telling him that he was sort of helping. They stood there for a long time before Blake was finally able to calm down and finally pull away. He sniffled and wiped his face, blinking out tears and letting them fall. Willow stepped up to him and quietly spoke to him, reassuring him a bit more than what Jaydon had said, giving him much more reassurance. Blake just nodded, continuing to wipe his face and occasionally let out a soft sob.

Soon, he breathed out a sigh and he looked up at Jaydon and gave him a half smile, his face red from crying. "Sorry..." he said. "I sort of... made your shoulder wet." he continued, breathing out a laugh. Jaydon looked down at his sweater and saw the wet spot and shook his head, telling him it was fine and that he had to do laundry anyway.

"Hey, I'm not sure if this would make you feel better but..." Jaydon paused for a short moment as if hesitating to speak. "… Um… How about we go to the coffee shop tomorrow?" Immediately, Blake lit up and quickly nodded and before he could speak, Jaydon added that he could bring anyone he would like to bring along and that he wouldn't mind at all. Blake smiled and again, wiped his face. Jaydon glanced over to Willow and Skye and saw them smiling at him and he couldn't help but also feel accomplished for helping someone feel a bit better since that wasn’t something he usually was able to do.

Blake breathed out a laugh and looked up at Jaydon, pausing for a long moment as he stared up at him. Soon, he broke eye contact and nervously looked away. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"Oh. Oh geeze, I'm sorry... Am I interrupting something?"

The four turned and saw Hector standing there, surprised to see what was happening. There was a short pause before Jaydon lightly pulled Blake away and turned to face Hector. "Sorry, I was just... Wondering what was taking Jaydon so long." Hector explained with a raised eyebrow. Jaydon breathed out a laugh and shifted awkwardly, unsure what to do or say.

Blake shook his head. "No, we were just talking. That's all." he quickly explained. "Really sorry for keeping you waiting." he continued, stepping away. Willow and Skye looked at each other a bit confused and Hector just smiled.

"Oh! Okay, well..." He looked over to Jaydon and tugged on his sweater. "We should probably go now, since he was really only here for his bag, right?" he asked looking up at the other man. Jaydon just nodded and was gently pulled away by Hector holding his sleeve. Before taking the turn to leave the space, he looked over to Blake and the other two and couldn't tell what Blake was feeling just by his expression. Suddenly, Blake perked up.

“H-Hey!” he called out, stopping Hector. “Would--… Would you like to come and hang out with us tomorrow?” he asked. He nervously shifting in his spot and said that Hector was free to come if he wanted. Hector paused for a short moment and smiled in response, nodding as he did.

“Sure, why not!” Hector replied, pulling Jaydon out of the room. Jaydon just awkwardly waved goodbye and the two left the stage, the door sort of slamming behind them, leaving the three alone in the stage. Jaydon didn’t really know why that encounter was so… Tense? He wasn’t sure what it was but he didn’t really like it. They walked in silence for a short moment before Hector turned and looked at Jaydon. "What was his problem?” he asked. Jaydon raised an eyebrow and hesitated to tell him. He wasn't really sure if he should go and tell him about Blakes personal life since Blake and Hector didn't really know each other at all. Jaydon stuttered.

“I… He was just…” he paused. “Well, we were just talking.”

Hector looked over to him with a raised eyebrow. “Really?” he asked. “It honestly looked more than just talking.” He pointed out. “Was there something wrong?” he continued, tilting his head slightly. Jaydon didn’t want to outright lie to Hector, but it wasn’t really appropriate to go and tell him about it… However, he didn’t know what could be wrong to tell him anyways. He trusted Hector and trusted that he wouldn’t go parading around and telling his own friends about all of this… Then again, he never really seen Hector with other friends. So, he sighed and decided to tell him anyway.

“Yeah, there was.” He admitted. “The other night someone close to him died and he…” Jaydon paused and breathed out a nervous laugh. “He wasn’t taking it too well at all.” He finished, scratching the back of his head. There was a short pause from Hector before he smiled at Jaydon.

“Oh, that’s nice of you to try and help him…” he pointed out, looking over to him and soon, he stopped, which in turn stopped Jaydon. “So… Who’s all coming to that hangout?” he asked, gently holding Jaydon’s arms. “And where is it going to be?” he continued, letting his hands slide down to hold Jaydon’s, who in response stuttered and looked down at Hector's hands, suddenly finding it hard to speak.

“I—I’m not sure…” Jaydon admitted. “I’m- I’m…” he breathed out a laugh as he felt his face begin to heat up and nervously glanced away, to nervous to really make eye contact with Hector. “I guess the others might come along…” he continued, pointing out that either Royce, Hassan, Phoebe, or Peggy where probably going to be the ones who were coming along, but he wasn’t entirely sure. Hector raised an eyebrow and tilted his head at him and Jaydon continued, saying that they were going to the Coffee Shop. He shrugged. “That’s all that was… really said.” He finished, giving Hector an awkward half smile.

Hector smiled back and patted Jaydon’s hands, letting go and continued walking. “Well, that sounds like it would be fun!” he said, tucking his hands into his pockets. Jaydon briefly looked down at his own hands and clenched them together, looking back up to Hector.

 _'Holy Shit,'_ He quietly muttered to himself. Soon, he noticed that Hector began walking away and quickly caught up to him. Honestly, he really wanted that to happen again. That felt good... Suddenly, the thought of what happened with Hassan and Royce yesterday came to mind and he began to feel a bit nervous about the whole hang out, hoping that it would only be Peggy and Phoebe who would come along. He stuttered and tried getting Hector's attention, which worked. Hector looked over to him with a raised eyebrow, humming at him curiously.

"Um... You know Hassan and Royce?" he asked. Hector paused, pursing his lips and nodded, asking why. Jaydon rubbed the back of his neck and proceeded to tell him what happened yesterday, telling him almost everything that he could remember. Hector's smile faded the longer Jaydon continued to explain and he almost looked... Well... It was hard to tell what on earth Hector was feeling at that moment, but it did not look pleasant.

"Oh...?" Hector furrowed his eyebrows, seeming to be confused. "I... I wonder why..." he thought out loud to himself. Hector shook his head and looked away, making sure that Jaydon couldn't see his face and was still walking. "I'm sorry..." He continued, now beginning to look hurt, judging from his body language. Jaydon sighed and watched Hector, unsure what to say. Pursing his lips, Jaydon nervously glanced away. "Do you believe them?" Hector suddenly asked, looking back. Jaydon raised his eyebrows in surprise from the sudden question but shook his head. 

"Of course not." He replied.

"Good, they're just jealous!" Hector snapped, looking much more hurt than before. "Who cares what they think, they just think they're better!" He said, his voice cracking. Oh god, Jaydon thought to himself as he realized he probably shouldn't have told this to Hector. "They're just making you think that... That I'm some sort of bad person... I'm not I swear..." He continued, his voice lowering and coming down to a near whisper.

Jaydon tilted his head at him, also letting his voice lower. "No, look... I don't believe that you're a bad person..." He assured. "You don't have to go to the... Hang out tomorrow, if you don't want too." he continued. Hector looked up at him with sad eyes.  
"Do you have to go?" he asked. Jaydon raised an eyebrow at this and stuttered on his words, before nodding in reply.

"Yes." He replied. "I was the one who suggested it, So..." Jaydon shrugged. "and It's for my friend and... Well, I guess he just needs people around him, I guess..." he finished, shrugging as he did. Hector glanced away and sighed.

"Well, even if I wanted to go, I can't anyways... I got work tomorrow." he explained, rubbing his arm. Jaydon almost forgot that Hector worked at the Coffee Shop and blinked at the thought but nodded in reply. He then assured that it will be alright and that if he wanted, he could come over and hang out with him after work, since he didn't really have much to do afterwards. It was a good thing that tomorrow was a weekend. So, he didn't have a lot planned, anyways.

Hector sighed and smiled at Jaydon. "I should go home..." He said. "I got work in the morning and well... I have to wake up early." He explained, pursing his lips. Jaydon nodded and before the two took their different ways, Hector again let his hands brush against Jaydon's, making his breath hitch in his throat. Finally, after a short pause, Hector turned around and left into the darkness without another word, the snow falling lightly from the sky. Jaydon watched for a long moment before breathing out a nervous laugh.

He tucked his hands close to his chest and smiled, breathing into them to warm them up from the cold night air. Why did he do that? Jaydon thought to himself, still looking in the general direction of where Hector left off too. He sighed and turned on his heels, continuing his trek back home and was left to his thoughts of what Hector said about his friends. Was he right about them? Or did Hector overreact? Jaydon pursed his lips and decided to ignore it for now as he tucked his hands into his sweater pocket.


End file.
